85 COMPETITION AND THE COVID-19 HEALTH CRISIS The Autorité provides guidance and oversight Given the exceptional crisis following the Covid-19 pandemic, the EU competition authorities rapidly indicated their willingness to provide guidance to companies on whether their cooperative Ensuring that essential practices intended to address the situation were compatible products remain available with competition law. In this respect, the Autorité set up a network at competitive prices dedicated to monitoring the crisis, with the aim of providing informal The Autorité’s work falls in the context and pragmatic responses to companies wishing to safeguard of the common message sent by their initiatives. the European Competition Network to companies (see Press Release of 23 March 2020). In this unprecedented pandemic context, the Autorité is careful to ensure that no company can abuse its market power or collude with other TWO EMBLEMATIC EXAMPLES companies to the detriment of consumers and the community. Clarification for a professional Supply of respiratory assistance It ensures that products regarded association on its possibilities equipment in the French as essential remain available for action in the area of overseas territories at competitive prices. Under no commercial rents circumstances will anticompetitive Following a report by a Guyanese company practices intended to exploit the crisis A professional association representing on 30 March 2020, the Autorité promp- be tolerated by the Autorité. An internal opticians (the Rassemblement des Opti- tly opened an investigation into possible network has been set up, in particular ciens de France) consulted the Autorité exclusive import practices by the Fisher to pool market surveillance work regarding its intention to intervene in sup- & Paykel Healthcare group. The investiga- during the crisis, analyse the different port of its members - opticians who had sus- tion services were particularly interested practices and, where necessary, take action to remedy the behaviour pended their businesses on account of the in the fact that this group seemed to have detected as effectively as possible. corona crisis - in their exchanges with lan- recently entrusted the import of its medi- dlords to secure an adjustment of their com- cal products in French Guiana, Guadeloupe mercial rents. and Martinique (in particular artificial ven- tilation masks useful for patients in inten- the pandemic context and to avoid any risk The Autorité confirmed that this approach sive care) to the sole company Cadmed Inc. of supply disruption in French Guyana and was part of the professional association’s located in the United States, thus preven- the French West Indies for sensitive medi- remit of providing information, advice and ting any other alternative supply of local cal products. Taking note of this initiative defending the interests of the profession distributors, in particular via mainland to safeguard competition in the Guyanese which it represented, and that the pro- France. and West Indian markets, the investigation posed intervention did not appear to raise services decided to close the investigation. any competition concerns. During the investigation, the Fisher & Pay- kel Healthcare group quickly took the initia- While welcoming the group’s spirit of res- Press release of 22 April 2020 tive to clarify its distribution rules, given ponsibility and cooperation, the Autorité indicated that it would remain vigilant with regard to market behaviour and would check that distributors in the French over- seas departments and territories could indeed obtain supplies in compliance with competition rules. Press release of 6 April 2020 Discover in video our work during the lockdown (in French) ACTIVATING TRANSFORMATION