REUTERS
The official price of a COVID-19 test is high.
The Kyiv regional office of Ukraine's Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine (AMCU) has launched a probe into whether prices of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests for the coronavirus are competitive.
The probe was initiated by member of Kyiv City Council Oleksandr Brodsky, AMCU chief Oleksiy Khmelnitskyy said on Facebook on August 18.
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"The information provided in the motion may indicate there are signs of violations of competition laws, namely, anticompetitive, concerted actions or abuse of monopoly position in actions of medical laboratories in Kyiv, suppliers and/or manufacturers of PCR tests," he wrote.
According to Khmelnitskyy, the official price of a COVID-19 test is high, ranging from UAH 715 (US$26.26) for an express tests to UAH 2,200 (US$80.8) for PCR tests.
"This is a lot. And the question is whether tests really cost that much? Or have several laboratories agreed to keep that price?" he said.
At the same time, Khmelnitskyy noted that the AMCU is not a law enforcement agency and could not blame anyone.
"But we will tell you for sure whether the competition laws have been violated by prices. Because the market economy should work in the interests of citizens," he wrote.
As UNIAN reported earlier, pharmacy chains in Kyiv in April 2020 lowered the trade margin on surgical masks to one hryvnia after the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine had opened a case against producers, suppliers and pharmacy chains in Kyiv and Kyiv region in connection with a significant rise in the price of surgical masks.