Case C-530/20: Judgment of the Court (Grand Chamber) of 22 December 2022 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Satversmes tiesa — Latvia) — ‘EUROAPTIEKA’ SIA (Reference for a preliminary ruling — Medicinal products for human use — Directive 2001/83/EC — Article 86(1) — Concept of ‘advertising of medicinal products’ — Article 87(3) — Rational use of medicinal products — Article 90 — Prohibited advertising methods — Advertising of medicinal products not subject to medical prescription and not reimbursed — Advertising by price — Advertising of promotional offers — Advertising of bundled sales — Prohibition)
Date: 2022-12-22
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: advertising, discount sale, over-the-counter drug, pharmaceutical legislation, pharmaceutical product, sales promotion








C_2023054EN.01000501.xml










13.2.2023   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 54/5






Judgment of the Court (Grand Chamber) of 22 December 2022 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Satversmes tiesa — Latvia) — ‘EUROAPTIEKA’ SIA
(Case C-530/20) (1)

(Reference for a preliminary ruling - Medicinal products for human use - Directive 2001/83/EC - Article 86(1) - Concept of ‘advertising of medicinal products’ - Article 87(3) - Rational use of medicinal products - Article 90 - Prohibited advertising methods - Advertising of medicinal products not subject to medical prescription and not reimbursed - Advertising by price - Advertising of promotional offers - Advertising of bundled sales - Prohibition)
(2023/C 54/05)
Language of the case: Latvian

Referring court

Satversmes tiesa

Parties to the main proceedings


Applicant:‘EUROAPTIEKA’ SIA

Intervening parties: Ministru kabinets

Operative part of the judgment







1.


Article 86(1) of Directive 2001/83/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 November 2001 on the Community code relating to medicinal products for human use, as amended by Directive 2004/27/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004,
must be interpreted as meaning that the dissemination of information that encourages the purchase of medicinal products by justifying the need for that purchase on the basis of the price of those medicinal products, by announcing a special sale or by indicating that those medicinal products are sold together with other medicinal products, including at a reduced price, or with other products, falls within the concept of ‘advertising of medicinal products’, within the meaning of that provision, even where that information does not refer to a specific medicinal product, but to unspecified medicinal products.










2.


Article 87(3) and Article 90 of Directive 2001/83, as amended by Directive 2004/27,
must be interpreted as not precluding a national provision that prohibits the inclusion, in advertising to the general public of medicinal products that are neither subject to medical prescription nor reimbursed, of information which encourages the purchase of medicinal products by justifying the need for that purchase on the basis of the price of those medicinal products, by announcing a special sale, or by indicating that those medicinal products are sold together with other medicinal products, including at a reduced price, or with other types of products.






(1)  OJ C 443, 21.12.2020.