Anti-Competitive Practices In The Healthcare Industry: A Comparative Analysis Of Legal Implications And Regulatory Challenges In The United States And India
- IJLLR Journal
- Mar 15
- 1 min read
Namitha Mariya Joseph, LLM, (Corporate and Commercial Law), CHRIST (Deemed to be University) Bangalore
ABSTRACT
The healthcare industry plays a crucial role in public well-being and economic stability, yet it is increasingly dominated by anti-competitive practices that drive up costs, reduce consumer choice, and limit innovation. This research paper examines key anti-competitive behaviours in healthcare, including market monopolization, price fixing, pay-for-delay agreements, exclusive contracts, and Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) manipulations. These practices significantly impact healthcare affordability and accessibility, particularly in the United States and India, where market structures differ but face similar regulatory challenges.
In the United States, hospital consolidations and mergers have led to regional monopolies, higher healthcare costs, and reduced competition, often without corresponding improvements in patient care. Pharmaceutical companies engage in price fixing and delay the entry of generic drugs through pay-for- delay agreements, costing consumers billions of dollars annually. PBMs manipulate drug pricing, prioritizing higher-cost medications that offer greater rebates, further inflating prescription drug costs. In India, corporate hospital chains, pharmaceutical pricing manipulation, and limited healthcare regulation contribute to inflated costs and restricted access to essential medicines. Price collusion and patent evergreening tactics by multinational pharmaceutical companies delay the availability of affordable generics. Weak enforcement and limited oversight by the agencies allow private entities to dominate the market.
This study proposes stronger antitrust enforcement, increased transparency in pricing, stricter regulations on PBMs and insurance providers, and greater investment in public healthcare infrastructure to combat these anti- competitive practices. International collaboration and policy reforms are essential to promoting a fairer, more competitive, and patient-centred healthcare system.
Keywords: Healthcare industry, anticompetition, competition, market monopolization, price fixing.
