HARRISBURG, PA — Pennsylvania is expected to receive more than $14.8 million under a proposed $400 million national settlement with Sandoz Inc. and Fougera Pharmaceuticals Inc. resolving allegations that the generic drug manufacturers conspired to inflate prices and restrict competition.
A coalition of states filed a motion this week in U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut seeking preliminary approval of the settlement, according to Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday’s office.
Of Pennsylvania’s expected share, as much as $9.19 million would be committed to restitution for consumers, with the remainder going to state agencies.
The agreement would resolve allegations that Sandoz and Fougera participated in long-running conspiracies to manipulate prices, reduce competition and restrain trade involving numerous generic prescription drugs. The companies’ alleged conduct was part of a broader series of state antitrust cases dating to 2016.
“This settlement will have significant impact for Pennsylvanians who chose generic drugs as a cost-savings measure, but instead were subjected to a market manipulated to maximize the company’s profits,” Sunday said.
Consumers who purchased certain generic drugs between May 2009 and December 2019 may qualify for compensation if the settlement receives the necessary court approval. The list of covered drugs is available at https://www.aggenericdrugs.com/English/Drug-List.
Consumers can obtain additional eligibility information by calling 1-866-290-0182, emailing info@AGGenericDrugs.com or visiting www.AGGenericDrugs.com.
Beyond the monetary settlement, Sandoz agreed to internal reforms intended to promote compliance with antitrust laws and competition requirements.
The proposed agreement would also resolve allegations involving Sandoz’s past and present international affiliates, including Novartis AG, Sandoz AG and Sandoz Group AG. The states have alleged that the affiliates participated in anticompetitive conduct and fraudulently transferred assets to avoid liability.
The coalition has previously reached settlements totaling about $96.5 million with Glenmark, Lannett, Bausch, Apotex and Heritage in the same litigation.
The broader investigation has produced four antitrust complaints involving generic drug manufacturers and executives.
The first case, filed in 2016, involved Heritage Pharmaceuticals, 17 other corporate defendants, two individual defendants and 15 generic drugs. Former Heritage executives Jeffery Glazer and Jason Malek subsequently entered settlement agreements and are cooperating with the states.
A second complaint filed in 2019 targeted Teva Pharmaceuticals and 20 other generic drug manufacturers and named 16 senior executives as individual defendants.
A third complaint, which is scheduled to be tried first, concerns 80 topical generic drugs representing billions of dollars in U.S. sales and names 26 corporate defendants and 10 individuals.
The states filed a fourth complaint earlier this year alleging that Novartis AG, Sandoz Group AG and Sandoz AG are liable for Sandoz’s alleged conduct and participated in fraudulent asset transfers.
Seven pharmaceutical executives are cooperating with the states across the four cases, according to the Attorney General’s Office.
The investigations have drawn on more than 20 million documents, millions of telephone records and contact information for more than 600 sales and pricing employees in the generic drug industry, as well as evidence supplied by cooperating witnesses.
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