FTC Seeks Delay in PBM Case Over Alleged Insulin Price Gouging

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has requested a delay in an evidentiary trial regarding accusations that pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) inflated insulin prices. According to a statement, the FTC argues that additional time is needed to accommodate up to 17 expert witnesses and to account for what it describes as significant delays in the discovery process caused by CVS Health. The agency claims CVS has “unreasonably delayed” its compliance with the document production requirements related to the case.

The ongoing legal battle centers around CVS’s pharmacy benefit manager, Caremark, and whether the company’s business practices have unlawfully reduced competition or violated federal laws under the FTC’s jurisdiction. The FTC began its investigation into CVS in December 2023, issuing a Civil Investigative Demand (CID) for documents related to its business practices.

On Monday, U.S. District Judge John D. Bates ordered CVS to produce documents from prior to and including December 31, 2023, by February 28, 2025. In addition, CVS must hand over responsive materials created between January 1, 2024, and December 31, 2024, by April 30, 2025, per the judge’s ruling.

However, CVS has pushed back against the deadline, filing a motion on Thursday to have the court deny the FTC’s request. In its filing, CVS argues that the FTC had previously agreed on a cut-off date of December 31, 2023, for the production of responsive materials, and asserts that the FTC’s new request is an unnecessary extension. The company also states that the FTC’s position is inconsistent and has shifted multiple times, with the most recent request suggesting CVS produce documents through December 31, 2024, within 30 days.

Related: Novo Nordisk Caps Insulin Prices in Settlement with Minnesota Attorney General

“CVS respectfully requests that the Court deny the FTC’s Petition, including its new proposal that CVS be ordered to produce documents through December 31, 2024, within 30 days of the Court’s order,” the company said in its motion.

CVS further challenged the FTC’s claim that the company is withholding a large volume of documents. According to a statement from CVS, the company has already produced over 1.2 million documents in response to the CID. Of the remaining documents, only about 70,000 are left to be produced, which CVS argues accounts for only about 5% of the total responsive materials.

The dispute comes after the FTC accused CVS of delaying and obstructing its investigation. The commission stated that CVS has provided only a fraction of the requested documents over the past year, hampering the agency’s ability to proceed with its inquiry.

In the larger context, the FTC’s probe into CVS Health and Caremark is an attempt to examine whether their business practices have harmed competition in the pharmacy industry, particularly in regard to insulin prices. The request for an extension of the trial timeline has added another layer of complexity to the ongoing investigation, which has attracted significant attention due to its potential implications for the U.S. healthcare sector.

Source: Healthcare Finance News