中国医药公司遭7百万垄断罚款

The National Development and Reform Commission has fined two medical companies in Eastern China’s Shandong province nearly seven million yuan. The firms are accused of controlling raw materials of compound reserpine, an anti-hypertensive drug and increasing its bid prices.
国家发改委对中国东部山东省的两家医药公司处以近700万元的罚款。这两家公司被指控控制抗高血压药复方利血平的原料，抬高标价。

Seven million yuan - It’s the first heavily fined anti-monopoly case. Compound Reserpine is an anti-hypertensive drug.
700万元——这是首例反垄断重罚案。复方利血平是一种抗高血压药。

So far, more than 10-million hypertensive patients rely on this medicine, with an annual consumption of nine billion tablets.
迄今为止，有1000万高血压病人依赖这种药，年消耗量为90亿片。

Most of the consumers are from middle and low income groups. In June 2011, the two accused Shandong medicine companies signed a sales agreement with two medicine producing companies in Northern Liaoning province, monopolizing the sales of the anti-hypertensive drug.
大多数消费者来自中低收入群体。2011年6月，被告的这两家山东医药公司与北方辽宁省的两家药品生产企业签订销售协议，垄断了这种抗高血压药的销售。

Wang Jiang, staff from NDRC, said, "The main aim of the agreement is to get control of raw materials as well as the sales channel of the anti-hypertensive drug. It also prevented the medicine-producing companies from selling the drug to other companies."
国家发改委的官员Wang Jiang透露：“协议的主要目的在于控制这种抗高血压药的原料和销售渠道。它还阻止药品生产企业将这种药买给其它企业。”

After the agreement was signed, the two Shandong medical companies then increased the raw material drug price 14 times higher, forcing other medical producing companies to halt their operation.
协议签订之后，山东这两家医药公司将原料药的价格提高了15倍，迫使其它药品生产企业停止运营。

Four factories in Eastern China’s Jiangsu Province have been out of production for nearly one month as their production costs have been raised by 90-million yuan.
中国东部江苏省的四家工厂因生产成本提高了9000万元而停产近1个月。

A staff member from Changzhou Medicine Factory, said, "All the workers are on holiday now. They are very worried and keep asking when production will resume. But so far, no one can give them a clear answer. "
常州药品厂的一名员工透露：“所有的工人现在都在放假。他们非常担心，一直在问什么时候能恢复生产。但是到目前为止，没人能给出一个确切的答案。”

But no answer for these workers doesn’t mean no action in the monopoly case. So far, the anti-hypertensive drugs at the two medicine companies in Shandong have been sealed by the NDRC.
但是没给这些工人答案并不意味指没有对这起垄断案采取行动。到目前为止，山东这两家医药公司的抗高血压药已经被国家发改委查封了。

Li Qing, deputy head of NDRC anti-monopoly bureau, said, "What they did has done great harm to our country’s price bid system, and also to the low-income groups who rely heavily on this medicine. We can’t tolerate such action."
国家发改委反垄断局副局长李青称：“他们的所作所为已经对我们国家的标价系统、对那些严重依赖这种药的低收入群体带来巨大伤害。我们不能容忍这样的行为。”

Many say what faces the two companies is not only the fine, but also a ruined reputation that may never be established once again.
很多人表示，这两家公司面临的不仅是罚款，还可能是再也不能建立的名誉的损坏。