Jakarta (7/7) - Indonesia Competition Commission (ICC) co-monitors the supply and prices of essential products for the medication and treatment of COVID-19, including oxygen, during the Imposition of Emergency Public Activity Restriction (Emergency PPKM). The monitoring is conducted through ICC's regional offices located in 7 (seven) provincial capital cities in Indonesia. The monitoring is focused on the identification of price and supply irregularities for medicines and oxygen needed for handling COVID-19 and potential violations of competition committed by the producers of such products. This is important considering that potential violations in the production and distribution lines are highly open at present.

Observations conducted in several regions generally show that the price of medicines sold still exceeds the highest retail price as provided for in Decision of the Minister of Health (KMK) Number HK.1.7/Menkes/4826/2021 regarding the Highest Retail Price of Drugs during the 2019 Corona Virus Disease Pandemic Period and varies. There is still a lack of medicine stocks taking place and being reported to take place in almost all regions, especially Southern parts of Sumatra, Lampung, and the entire Java-Bali. The price of the types of drugs such as Favipiravir 200mg and Azithromycin Tablet 500mg is monitored to have increased above the Highest Retail Price in almost all regions in Indonesia. The lack of oxygen cylinders is also often found, although oxygen is still available in the market and the utilization of newly used oxygen producers is still 74% of the national capacity. There are still logistical barriers to the distribution channels in Kalimantan and Sulawesi up to the Eastern Indonesia. Therefore, ICC calls the public not to do panic buying and prioritize supplies for those who are really in need of them to prevent an uncontrollable spike in the demand.

ICC has obtained various names of business actors supplying such essential products and has asked them not to try to gain abnormal profits during this hard time. For this purpose, ICC has made this issue an initiative case pre-investigation as part of the law enforcement proceedings.

ICC will also establish coordination with the National COVID-19 Handling Task Force Team and other law enforcement agencies to exchange information to keep the security of such supplies in a near future. ICC is also very open to the public to receive reports on alleged unfair business competition in the supply of various essential products in handling of the COVID-19 via electronic mail at pengaduan@kppu.go.id.