Jazz Pharma, Alexion, and Lundbeck were the subject of SOJ lawsuits asserting kickbacks and committing general violations of Medicare laws. The United States Department of Justice has decided to agree to a settlement of $122.6 million in total from these three alleged Medicare violators.
The drug companies were accused of...
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Category: Pharmaceutical
Multidrug-Resistant Fungus Enters The United States and Begins to Spread Globally
According to the Centers for Disease Control, a multidrug-resistant fungus, Candida auris, is beginning to spread in numerous countries, including the United States where a total of 617 cases have already been reported. Of these cases, 309 have been reported in New York, while Illinois and New Jersey have also reported high...
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AbbVie Sued in Class Action for Shielding Humira from Competition in The United States Until 2023 Using 136 Patents
Drugmaker giant, AbbVie, is facing a putative class-action lawsuit for its use of 136 patents on its drug Humira, which effectively protects it from competition until 2023. This complaint followed harsh criticism of AbbVie CEO, Richard Gonzalez, for the company’s strategic use of patents and high drug prices by the Senate Finance Committee...
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Study Shows That Commonly Used Oral Pills May Contain More Potentially Harmful Ingredients Than Consumers Realize
Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have invested their time and effort into researching the pills patients commonly take. Their findings show that the majority of orally-taken pills may be detrimental to a patient’s health due to certain inactive ingredients.
The research shows that the team...
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Florida Proposes Legislation to Allow for the Importation of Prescription Drugs from Canada
With the increased frustration regarding inflated prescription drug prices, states like Florida are pushing for legislative programs that would permit the United States to import drugs from Canada. If this bill were to pass, it would allow many of the identical prescription drugs consumed by Americans to be purchased for a third...
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Pharmaceutical Giant Eli Lilly Chooses to Release a Generic Insulin Option in Hopes of Addressing High Drug Prices
Eli Lilly, a pharmaceutical giant known for their rapid-acting insulin, Humalog, has officially decided to release a generic version of insulin that will be nearly half the price of its name-brand product.
Not long before this announcement, many pharmaceutical leaders were gathered in order to discuss the issue concerning confusingly...
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U.S. Senate puts pressure on leaders of big pharma companies to lower drug prices
Capitol Hill was in suspense as seven giants of the drug industry made their presence there known in order to discuss the issue concerning drug prices. Lawmakers were there to hear their reasoning for these high prices while mildly criticizing them for their inability to put patients first.
The...
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Former Pharmacy Representative from San Antonio Pleads Guilty to a Healthcare Fraud Scheme Amounting to $8.8 Million
Holly Blakely, a former San Antonio pharmaceutical rep in Texas, plead guilty and confessed her involvement in an $8.8 million healthcare fraud scheme.
Initially, Holly Blakely was charged in a 30-count indictment. This allegedly means that she paid more than $400,000 in bribes and kickbacks to clinicians for prescribing compounded medications. Compound medication is basically...
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Zyprexa Kickback Scheme Results in a $1.42 Billion Fine
In 2009, the company Eli Lilly & Co. plead guilty to illegally marketing an antipsychotic drug, Zyprexa, for unapproved uses on patients, leading to a fine of $1.42 billion. This settlement ended a series of civil lawsuits, as well as a criminal investigation. At the time this large of a settlement was unheard of,...
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Lap Dances Used as Leverage in Opioid Bribe Scheme
A former Insys Therapeutics executive, accused in an opioid bribe scheme, may have once gifted a lap dance to a doctor the company was pressuring to prescribe opioids drugs to patients. The troubling allegations are emerging as part of Insys trial in Boston.
Jurors heard the “lap dance” testimony...
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