Utah AG: Drug companies will pay dearly for cheating consumers and taxpayers

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http://www.kutv.com/content/news/topnews/story.aspx?content_id=b9bffbfd-ac42-470f-84cf-05582706fb8aKUTVUtah Gets $2 Million From Drug Company's CheatingBy Doug G. Ware

SALT LAKE CITY - A drug company has been forced to pay Utah more than $2 million stemming from a series of illegal actions it made, officials said.

Bristol-Myers Squibb recently reached a settlement over its illegal activities with 43 states, including Utah. In all, the drug company must pay $389 million to the states affected. Utah will get $2,169,933 of that amount.According to authorities, the company orchestrated a series of illegal marketing and pricing schemes for its prescription drugs. For example, Bristol-Myers Squibb made illegal payments to physicians, health care providers and pharmacies to entice them to buy their products.Also, officials say, the company reported inflated prices for its prescription drugs so Medicaid and other federal health care programs would have to pay more for the drugs.

Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff

"$2 million will go a long way to help care for people who rely on Medicaid," said Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff. "Drug company chiefs should learn a lesson from Bristol-Myers Squibb, that they will pay dearly for cheating consumers and taxpayers."Bristol-Myers Squibb is also accused of misreporting sales prices of an antidepressant, Serzone, in order to reduce rebate payments to state Medicaid programs.The $389 million settlement reimburses the federal government and participating states for the excessive money paid by Medicaid programs, that resulted from Bristol-Myers Squibb's misconduct."We see many cases where drug companies skirt the law and game the system," said Steed, director of the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, who represented Utah in this case. "Hopefully, the industry will take notice."

http://newsok.com/oklahoma-briefs-thursday-july-31-2008/article/3277088/The OklahomanState gets $1.37M in drug settlementJuly 31, 2008The state of Oklahoma has received $1.37 million as part of a settlement with Bristol-Myers Squibb in a case in which it allegedly overcharged state and federal medical programs.Oklahoma's share was part of a $389 million settlement that the drug company paid to 43 states, the District of Columbia and federal government, said Charlie Price, spokesman for the Oklahoma Attorney General's office."The issue was that they had inflated prices for drugs that were purchased by the state and federal Medicaid programs,” Price said. "We got the check two or three weeks ago.”Most of the settlement money went to the Oklahoma Health Care Authority to reimburse it for the overcharges, Price said. The Attorney General's office received a share that represented the civil penalties that Bristol-Meyers Squibb paid.The largest share of the overall settlement, about 70 percent, went to the federal government, Price said.

http://billingsgazette.net/articles/2008/07/30/news/state/45-drugcomapnies.txt

Billings GazetteDrug companies set to pay Montana to settle lawsuitState BureauJuly 30, 2008.HELENA - The state of Montana has received about $295,000 as part of a national settlement with a pharmaceutical company and its former subsidiary to resolve complaints of illegal drug marketing and pricing of prescription drugs paid by state Medicaid programs.It is a part of a $389 million national settlement with Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. and its former subsidiary, Apothecon Inc.The lawsuit was filed by 43 states, the District of Columbia and the federal government. Montana has been part of the lawsuit since 1995, said Judy Beck, a spokeswoman for the state Justice Department.Montana's $295,091 will go to the state Medicaid program run by the state Department of Public Health and Human Services, Beck said. Medicaid is the federal-state program that pays medical bills for the poor. The settlement addresses allegations that Bristol-Myers Squibb engaged in some improper marketing and pricing practices, including:• Reporting inflated prices for some prescription drugs, knowing that Medicaid and various federal health care programs would use these prices to buy drugs from Bristol-Myers Squibb and Apothecon.• Illegally paying physicians, health care providers and pharmacies to induce them to buy these products.• Promoting the sale and use of Abilify, an antipsychotic drug, for children and for the treatment of dementia-related psychosis.The federal Food and Drug Administration has not approved these uses.• Misreporting sales for an antidepressant called Serzone, which led to improper reduction of the amount of rebates paid to state Medicaid programs.In addition, Bristol-Myers Squibb signed a corporate integrity agreement with the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, requiring the company to accurately report its average sales prices and average manufacturers' prices in the future.

http://www.trib.com/articles/2008/07/28/news/wyoming/dca55dceaec1a263872574930021052d.txtCasper Star-Tribune

Wyoming gets share of drug pricing settlement

By JOAN BARRONJuly 28, 2008CHEYENNE -- Wyoming is one of 43 states sharing in a $389 million settlement between the federal government and Bristol-Myers Squibb Company to resolve claims of illegal drug marketing and prescription prices paid by Medicaid.The State of Wyoming received $554,320.39 in state and federal money from the settlement amount. The Wyoming share was $213,943.44, according to an announcement from the National Association of Medicaid Fraud Control Units.The money will go into the state's general fund, a spokesperson for the Wyoming Department of Health said Friday.The settlement resolves allegations that Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (BMS) and its former wholly owned subsidiary, Apothecon, Inc., reported inflated prices for various prescription drugs used by Medicaid and paid illegal remuneration to physicians, health care providers and pharmacies to induce them to purchase BMS and Apothecon products, the release said.Other allegations were the company promoted sales and use of Ability, an antipsychotic drug for pediatric use and treatment of dementia-related psychosis, uses which the Federal Food and Drug Administration has not approved, and also misinterpreted sales prices for Serzone, an anti-depressant, which resulted in improper reduction of the amount of rebates paid to the state Medicaid programs.A team from the National Association of Medicaid Fraud Control Units participated in the investigation and represented the states' interests in the settlement negotiations. Team members include Unit Directors from Ohio and Vermont as well as Assistant Attorneys General from Massachusetts, New York, and New Mexico.

Only 8 states to go

If your state has a question mark (?) below, you could contact your own State Attorney General here: http://www.naag.org/attorneys_general.php , ask for the Media Relations or Press Contact person and then request the press release (or the settlement dollar amount) on the Bristol-Myers Squibb settlement for illegally

promoting their antipsychotic drug Abilify for use in kids and the elderly.

And then flip the press release to your local newspaper.

Articles here: http://tmap.wordpress.com

Alabama

Non participating

Alaska

Non participating

Arizona

?

Arkansas

$1.3 million

California

$23 million

Colorado

$2.6 million

Connecticut

$1.9 million

Delaware

$1.1 million

District of Columbia

?

Florida

$21.5 million

Georgia

$12.1 million

Hawaii

?

Idaho

$1.7 million

Illinois

$10 million

Indiana

$2.2 million

Iowa

$1.9 million

Kansas

$3 million

Kentucky

$3 million

Louisiana

9.6 million

Maine

$829,862

land

$2.3 million

Massachusetts

$9.2 million

Michigan

$10,990,484

Minnesota

$4.35 million

Mississippi

Non participating

Missouri

$11 million

Montana

$295,091.26

Nebraska

$3.2 million

Nevada

?

New Hampshire

$1.2 million

New Jersey

?

New Mexico

$1.3 million

New York

$40 million

North Carolina

$14.8 million

North Dakota

?

NYC

$7.5 million

Ohio

$6.5 million

Oklahoma

1.37 million

Oregon

$3 million

Pennsylvania

Non participating

Rhode Island

?

South Carolina

Non participating

South Dakota

$700,000

Tennessee

$3.5 million

Texas

$15.7 million

Utah

$2.1 million

Vermont

$318,963

Virginia

$7.1 million

Washington

$6.8 million

West Virginia

?

Wisconsin

Non participating

Wyoming

$554,320