A PYMNTS Company

US: States claim victory against drug makers

By  |  August 18, 2019

One of two federal lawsuits pursued by West Virginia and other states alleging that a number of generic drug makers engaged in a scheme to fix prices and allot market share took a step forward last week.

The judge denied the defendants’ joint motion to dismiss plaintiffs’ claims that the drug makers engaged in an overarching conspiracy, and allowed the plaintiffs to move forward to establish those claims.

Curtis Johnson, spokesman for Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, commented, “We believe the order is a big win for the states and private plaintiffs. We believe it has the potential to be a significant factor in moving the cases forward.”

Both suits are in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania before Judge Cynthia Rufe. Both allege that the defendant drug firms colluded to fix and raise prices, and to divvy up market share  in order to avoid competition and maintain agreeable, inflated price.

Full Content: Bloomberg

Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.