Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Novartis' Generics Unit Agrees To Pay $195M To Resolve Criminal Charges Over Deals With Other Manufacturers
Stat: Novartis Generic Unit To Pay $195 Million To Settle Price Fixing Charges
In the latest fallout from a federal probe into generic drug price fixing, the Sandoz unit of Novartis (NVS) agreed to pay $195 million to resolve criminal charges of conspiring with other manufacturers, the third company to be charged as part of the long-running investigation. The company, which is one of the world’s largest purveyors of generic medicines, admitted to working with several rivals to set prices for several medicines, including a blood pressure pill, an eczema ointment, and a cystic fibrosis treatment between 2013 and 2015, the Department of Justice said in a statement. Sandoz admitted that sales affected by its activities exceeded $500 million. (Silverman, 3/2)
The Wall Street Journal: Novartis Unit To Pay $195 Million In Generic-Drug Price-Fixing Case
Under the agreement, the four felony counts against Sandoz will be dropped after three years if it lives up to its commitments to the Justice Department. “Today’s resolution, with one of the largest manufacturers of generic drugs, is a significant step toward ensuring that prices for generic drugs are set by competition, not collusion, and rooting out antitrust crimes that cheated American purchasers of vital medicines,” said Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim, the Justice Department’s antitrust chief. (Kendall and Hopkins, 3/2)
In other pharmaceutical news —
Stat: FDA Urged To Recall Some Metformin Pills Over A Possible Carcinogen
An online pharmacy is calling for U.S. regulators to recall batches of the metformin diabetes medicine made by nearly a dozen companies after its tests found excessive amounts of a possible carcinogen, the same substance that has already prompted widespread recalls of blood pressure and heartburn pills. Metformin is used to control high blood sugar levels in people with Type 2 diabetes. (Silverman, 3/2)
Reuters: Misleading Ads Turn People Away From HIV-Prevention Meds
Targeted advertisements on Facebook and television that overstate side effects of HIV-prevention pills might be the greatest threat to protecting people at high risk of infection with the virus, experts say. The ads, sponsored by law firms, call for participation in class action lawsuits against Gilead Sciences, a California-based drugmaker that sells the only two U.S.-approved regimens of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) medicines. (3/2)
