The Justice Department (DOJ) on Tuesday, June 30, charged generic drug giant Glenmark Pharmaceuticals with manipulating the prices of drugs sold in the US, as part of a broad federal probe of price-fixing in the generics industry, reported Politico.
The company was charged with one count of conspiracy in restraint of trade in a filing in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The complaint alleges that Glenmark and other companies raked in US$200 million from the illegal scheme.
It could face hundreds of millions of dollars in fines, according to a press release from DOJ announcing the charges. A Glenmark spokesperson said the allegations are false.
The charging document alleges that Glenmark and other pharmaceutical companies conspired to raise the price of the cholesterol drug pravastatin. It names Apotex as one of the companies with which Glenmark allegedly conspired.
Apotex agreed to pay a US$24 million penalty in May after admitting it had conspired with other companies to fix the price of pravastatin. The payment is part of a deferred prosecution agreement it entered with the department.
“By cheating through fixing prices, generic drug companies artificially raised prices even though prescription drug costs were already sky high,” Makan Delrahim, who heads DOJ’s Antitrust Division, said in a statement. “As today’s charge shows, the Antitrust Division will not hesitate to charge these companies, and litigate where necessary, particularly where their crimes resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in overcharges for life-saving medications.”
Full Content: Politico
Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.
Featured News
EU Extends Support for Farms and Fisheries Amid Market Disruptions
May 5, 2024 by
CPI
Sony and Apollo Bid $26 Billion for Paramount Acquisition
May 5, 2024 by
CPI
Goldman Sachs Resolves Decade-Old Metal-Rigging Class Action Lawsuit
May 5, 2024 by
CPI
Italian Antitrust Ruling Puts Halt on Intesa Sanpaolo’s Fintech Ambitions
May 5, 2024 by
CPI
Google Antitrust Case: Closing Arguments Conclude
May 5, 2024 by
CPI
Antitrust Mix by CPI
Antitrust Chronicle® – Economics of Criminal Antitrust
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
Navigating Economic Expert Work in Criminal Antitrust Litigation
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
The Increased Importance of Economics in Cartel Cases
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
A Law and Economics Analysis of the Antitrust Treatment of Physician Collective Price Agreements
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
Information Exchange In Criminal Antitrust Cases: How Economic Testimony Can Tip The Scales
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI