ADSE. Competition authorities once again accuse private companies of collusion
In 2022, the Competition Authority (AdC) had convicted five private healthcare groups — Trofa, Hospital Particular, CUF, Lusíadas and Luz Saúde — and the association representing them (Associação Portuguesa de Hospitalização Privada) “for a concerted practice, restricting competition, in the contracting of hospital healthcare services by the public healthcare subsystem ADSE”. The groups had then been sentenced to a total fine of 190.9 million euros.
They appealed to the Competition, Regulation and Supervision Court (TCRS) against the fine, but also against the interlocutory decision of the AdC on the treatment and classification of confidentiality relating to seized electronic correspondence. This court in Santarém dismissed this last appeal, but the defendants appealed to the Court of Appeal, where they were ultimately ruled in their favor. According to the AdC, the Lisbon Court of Appeal concluded that, “since the electronic correspondence in question was seized by the AdC with the authorization of the Public Prosecutor's Office (MP), such seizure was not valid since, in its view, it should have been preceded by the authorization of a criminal investigating judge, ordering, consequently, that the TCRS declare the nullity of such evidence”. As a result, the Competition Court ordered the return of the case to the AdC, so that, if it so wished, it could proceed with a new phase of investigation.
The investigation was reopened and, now, on June 26, a new statement of unlawfulness was adopted, that is, a new accusation. The companies targeted are now in the defense phase. At this stage, the amount of the fine has not yet been determined. If, after this phase, the Competition Authority issues a conviction, it is subject to appeal.
The Competition Authority indicates that it has discovered evidence that private healthcare groups “agreed on strategies and negotiating positions in the context of negotiations with ADSE, at least between 2016 and 2019”, aiming to set prices and commercial conditions, having, according to the accusation, coordinated the suspension and threat of termination of the private groups’ agreements with ADSE to pressure the regularization of invoices from 2015 and 2016.
The process originated from complaints and newspaper reports. In the statement sent to newsrooms by the AdC this Thursday, July 3, the names of the groups are not mentioned, saying only that “a sector association and five economic groups from the private hospital sector are involved”.
observador
