Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha joined a national coalition of attorneys general to announce a $49.1 million settlement with drugmakers Apotex and Heritage Pharmaceuticals over alleged price manipulation. (Mint Images/Getty)
Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha joined a national coalition of attorneys last week announcing a $49.1 million settlement with drugmakers Heritage Pharmaceuticals and Apotex.
The settlement addresses allegations that Apotex and Heritage, a subsidiary of pharma company Emcure of India, colluded to manipulate drug prices and restrain competition. Both companies have pledged to enact internal reforms that support fair competition, and have also agreed to cooperate with further litigation against other drugmakers who have also been accused of involvement in price manipulation.
“Anticompetitive behavior is always problematic, but when companies collude to manipulate prices to achieve enormous profits, it’s downright sinister,” Neronha said in a statement.
Heritage is responsible for $10 million of the settlement and Apotex will pay $39.1 million.
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong is leading the multi-district lawsuit, which was first announced by the state on Oct. 31. Tong wrote that this initial settlement is a victory against “widespread, long-running conspiracies” of artificially inflated generic drug prices that date back to 2016. An additional 30 corporate defendants and 25 individual executives face scrutiny, officials said.
The 50 plaintiffs include 46 states as well as Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, the Northern Mariana Islands and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Alabama, Arkansas, Hawaii and Texas are not included.
People who purchased either company’s generic drugs between 2010 and 2018 might qualify for compensation. Eligibility details can be found at the settlement website, by calling 1-866-290-0182, or by emailing info@AGGenericDrugs.com. A list of qualifying drugs can be found on the settlement website.
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