HARTFORD, Conn. — Two pharmaceutical companies accused of artificially inflating and manipulating prices of generic drugs have agreed to pay a $49.1 million settlement, part of multiple lawsuits brought on by Connecticut Attorney General William Tong, who led the 50-state and territory coalition. This settlement foreshadows the first court trial in this series of anti-trust price fixing investigations into the generic drug industry.
Heritage Pharmaceuticals and Apotex will pay settlements totaling $49.1 million and have agreed to cooperate in litigations Connecticut is leading against 30 corporate defendants and 25 individual executives. Both companies have also agreed to reform internally to make sure they comply with antitrust laws and ensure fair competition in the industry.
Heritage will be slated to pay a $10 million settlement and Apotex will be slated to pay a $39.1 million settlement. This first lawsuit was filed in 2016.
"Everybody made their money back, so why did the [price of] doxycycline...spike 8,000% over the last decade or more? There's no good reason for it, and one of the reasons is price fixing in the generic drug market." Tong said when he announced the settlements.
Investigators compiled over 20 million documents, millions of call detail records and contact information for 600 generic drug sales and pricing individuals into databases to find out that the competitors met with each other in various outings to negotiate "illegal agreements" to increase drug prices.
Two other lawsuits were filed in connection to this. Teva Pharmaceuticals and 19 of the nation's largest generic drug manufacturers were sued in 2019 for manipulating prices.
A trial is being prepared for the latest lawsuit, filed through the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut in June 2020, which focuses on 80 topical generic drugs that generate billions of dollars in sales in the U.S. There are 26 corporate defendants, including Pfizer, Actavis, Mallinckrodt and more, and 10 individual executives named in this latest lawsuit.
Consumers who bought a prescription drug made by Heritage or Apotex between 2010 and 2018 may be eligible for compensation. Consumers can find out more and make claims by calling toll free number 1-866-290-0182 or by emailing info@AGGenericDrugs.com
Tong announced the settlements in a news conference Thursday.
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