|
Public
Employee Press Union busts
crooked drug firms Off-label fraud
costs major pill pusher $40 million
The DC 37 Health
and Security Plan will be covered by the $40 million settlement of a nationwide
class-action lawsuit against the manufacturer of a drug improperly used to treat
depression among children and adolescents.
The suit charged that the giant
drug maker Glaxo inappropriately marketed Paxil for depression involving patients
under 18, an off-label use not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration, and defrauded prescription drug plans by hiding data that showed
an increased risk of suicidal behavior among youngsters using Paxil.
The
DC 37 plan has joined two other union benefit funds in filing a formal objection
charging that the settlements claims process is too burdensome and complicated
for the plans to actually receive compensation.
Attorney Audrey Browne,
director of regulatory compliance at the DC 37 plan, worked on the objection along
with the other unions and Prescription Access Litigation, a coalition of consumer
groups fighting illegal drug price manipulation and deceptive marketing. Together,
the funds represent 320,000 union members, retirees and their families.
We
dont expect our share of the settlement to be especially large, Browne
said. But we have sent the important message here that union drug plans
and consumer groups will not tolerate fraudulent practices by the pharmaceutical
industry.
Manufacturers that improperly market drugs must be
forced to compensate victimized plans and patients, said DC 37 Health and
Security Plan Administrator Cynthia Chin-Marshall. She said the plan has a number
of lawsuits pending against drug firms and would continue these efforts. | |