Attorney General Phil Weiser announces $49.1 million settlements in ongoing multistate antitrust lawsuit against generic drug manufacturers

Attorney General Phil Weiser announces $49.1 million settlements in ongoing multistate antitrust lawsuit against generic drug manufacturers

Consumers who bought certain generic prescription drugs in the United States between January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2018, could be eligible for money

Oct. 31, 2024 (DENVER) - Attorney General Phil Weiser today announced two significant cooperation agreements and settlements with Heritage Pharmaceuticals and Apotex totaling $49.1 million to resolve allegations that both companies engaged in widespread, long-running conspiracies to artificially inflate and manipulate prices, and reduce competition for numerous generic prescription drugs.

As part of their settlement agreements, both companies agreed to cooperate in the ongoing multistate litigations, and further agreed to a series of internal reforms to ensure fair competition and compliance with the law.

The $10 million settlement with Heritage will be filed today in the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut. A settlement with Apotex for $39.1 million will be finalized and filed in the U.S. District Court in the near future.

"Coloradans who rely on these medicines to treat diseases and maintain their health were all harmed by the brazen conduct of these companies and their executives," Weiser said. "This acknowledgement of responsibility by some defendants is a positive first step, but the other defendants must be held accountable for their blatant disregard for the law. We will continue to pursue those who engage in collusion and anticompetitive conduct."

Attorneys general for nearly all states and territories filed three antitrust lawsuits, starting first in 2016. The first complaint included Heritage and 17 other corporate defendants, two individual defendants, and 15 generic drugs. Two former executives from Heritage Pharmaceuticals have since entered into settlement agreements and are cooperating. The second complaint, filed in 2019 against Teva Pharmaceuticals and 19 of the nation's largest generic drug manufacturers, names 16 individual senior executive defendants.

The third complaint focuses on 80 topical generic drugs that account for billions of dollars of sales in the U.S. and names 26 corporate defendants and 10 individual defendants. Six additional pharmaceutical executives have entered into settlement agreements and are cooperating to support the attorneys general's claims in all three cases. The drugs at issue are used to treat diseases and conditions like diabetes, cancer, HIV, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, ADHD, and more.

The cases all stem from a series of investigations built on evidence from several cooperating witnesses at the core of the different wide-ranging conspiracies, a massive document database of over 20 million documents, and a phone records detailing millions of calls.

Each complaint addresses a different set of drugs and defendants and lays out an interconnected web of industry executives where these competitors met with each other during industry dinners, "girls nights out," lunches, cocktail parties, golf outings and communicated via frequent telephone calls, emails, and text messages that sowed the seeds for their illegal agreements. Defendants used terms like "fair share," "playing nice in the sandbox," and "responsible competitor" to describe how they unlawfully discouraged competition, raised prices and enforced an ingrained culture of collusion.

Consumers who purchased a generic prescription drug manufactured by either of these two companies between 2010 and 2018, you may be eligible for compensation. To determine your eligibility, call 1-866-290-0182 (Toll-Free), email [email protected] or visit www.AGGenericDrugs.com.

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Media contact:
Elliot Goldbaum
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