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Pharma firms stash profits in Europe's tax havens

Investigate Europe finds 15 of the world’s biggest drugmakers operate more than 1,300 subsidiaries in tax havens, as they amassed over €580 billion in global profits over the past five years. Meanwhile, patients face life-threatening delays for medicines due to high drug prices.

This is a stark contrast with academics' estimates that similar antibodies can be manufactured for between$9.50 (€8.85) and $20 (€18.60) per 100 mg.In November 2019, the Irish healthcare system stressed the "substantial budget impact" of providing the drug for stage three cancer and noted that talks with the company were ongoing. “These rules ensure that it is not possible for companies to exploit mismatches in tax residency rules.”However, Dr James Stewart, adjunct professor in finance at Trinity College Dublin, says the structures can continue to exist because Ireland has a double taxation treaty with Switzerland. In exchange for sharing their discovery with the public, patent holders are granted exclusive rights to manufacture and market the drug for a certain period, usually 20 years.Generics are typically up to 85 per cent cheaper once rolled out, but as long as their monopolies last, drugmakers can impose high prices on governments and insurers.

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