CELEX: 62018CA0786
Language: en
Date: 2020-06-11 00:00:00
Title: Case C-786/18: Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 11 June 2020 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Bundesgerichtshof — Germany) — ratiopharm GmbH v Novartis Consumer Health GmbH (Reference for a preliminary ruling — Protection of public health — Internal market — Medicinal products for human use — Directive 2001/83/EC — Advertising — Article 96 — Distribution of free samples of medicinal products to persons qualified to prescribe them — Pharmacists excluded from the distribution of free samples of medicinal products — Inapplicability to distribution of free samples of non-prescription medicinal products — Consequences for the Member States)

17.8.2020   
            
            
               EN
            
            
               Official Journal of the European Union
            
            
               C 271/8
            
         
      Judgment of the Court (Third Chamber) of 11 June 2020 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Bundesgerichtshof — Germany) — ratiopharm GmbH v Novartis Consumer Health GmbH
      (Case C-786/18) (1)
      
      (Reference for a preliminary ruling - Protection of public health - Internal market - Medicinal products for human use - Directive 2001/83/EC - Advertising - Article 96 - Distribution of free samples of medicinal products to persons qualified to prescribe them - Pharmacists excluded from the distribution of free samples of medicinal products - Inapplicability to distribution of free samples of non-prescription medicinal products - Consequences for the Member States)
      (2020/C 271/10)
      Language of the case: German
      
         Referring court
      
      Bundesgerichtshof
      
         Parties to the main proceedings
      
      
         Applicant: ratiopharm GmbH
      
         Defendant: Novartis Consumer Health GmbH
      
         Operative part of the judgment
      
      Article 96(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/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 March 2004, must be interpreted as precluding pharmaceutical companies from distributing free samples of medicinal products to pharmacists. On the other hand, that provision does not preclude distributing free samples of non-prescription medicinal products to pharmacists.
      
         (1)  OJ C 112, 25.3.2019.