K&L Gates Advises Pharmaceutical Wholesalers on Successful Application for COVID-19 Collaboration

Sydney – Global law firm K&L Gates has advised Australia's major pharmaceutical wholesalers API, Sigma, Symbion and National Pharmacies and their representative body, the National Pharmaceutical Services Association (NPSA), on an urgent Interim Authorisation application to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). The granting of the authorisation enables greater collaboration and assists in maximising efficiencies in the wholesalers’ supply chains as they provide medicines and pharmacy products to consumers, pharmacies and hospitals.

The ACCC continues to prioritise the processing of urgent applications for Interim Authorisation to assist businesses in responding to COVID-19 challenges. Recognising the significant public benefits of the industry collaboration, the ACCC granted Interim Authorisation within 48 hours of the wholesalers’ application, the eighth urgent application for Interim Authorisation the ACCC has processed, where commercial coordination was necessitated by COVID-19 challenges.

The K&L Gates team was led by Sydney policy and regulatory partner Ayman Guirguis, with lawyer Mei Gong assisting.

Guirguis said: "We are proud to assist our clients to collaborate to make their supply chains as efficient as possible at this vital time as they source and deliver medicines and pharmacy products. Where there is a commercial imperative to collaborate in this time of crisis, parties can engage with the ACCC to arrive at a quick and effective outcome - where the collaboration will assist the public."

You can read the ACCC statement on their website.