Marc Dann scores victory over Rx company reporting false earnings

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, September 10, 2007
CONTACT: Michelle Gatchell Assist. Dir. of Communication
614-728-0701 mgatchell@ag.state.oh.us

Attorney General Dann joins 49 state AG’s to stop a pharmaceutical company from reporting false earnings

COLUMBUS – Attorney General Marc Dann joins attorney’s general from 50 states and the District of Columbia to announce reaching an agreement in principle with Aventis Pharmaceuticals Inc. The company will pay $182.8 million in state and federal money to settle allegations of reporting inflated average wholesale prices for their drug, Anzemet. These false prices resulted in Medicaid and Medicare paying too much for this product.

Aventis Pharmaceuticals provides prescription drugs, paid for by Medicaid, to Ohioans. Medicaid is the federal/state health care insurance program that provides health care coverage for the economically disadvantaged. This Program is funded by both state and federal dollars. Dann claims the company issued false and misleading wholesale prices to induce the state and Ohio citizens to pay excessive, inflated prices for prescription drugs.

“I want to make sure Ohioans are not victimized by big business defrauding the system,” said Attorney General Dann. “This type of deceptive business practice will not be tolerated and my office will continue to look into the pharmaceutical industry to make sure no other company is taking advantage of the system or Ohioans.”

In addition to the civil settlement, amounting to $182.8 million in damages to the federal government and state, Aventis will enter into a Corporate Integrity Agreement (CIA) with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General. The CIA imposes significant requirements upon Aventis that will minimize the possibility of this behavior reoccurring. A large portion of the recovery will go to the Federal government to reimburse their Medicare dollars, due to Anzemet’s approved usage in conjunction with chemotherapy. $22.7 million will go to the state Medicaid programs, and of that Ohio will receive more than $676,000.

The settlements with Aventis are the result of negotiations conducted by the Department of Justice and the National Association of Medicaid Fraud Control Units, led by the Unit Directors from Ohio, New York and Virginia.

The Attorney General’s office has similar lawsuits pending against Abbott Laboratories Inc., Pharmacia Corp., Warrick Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Roxane Laboratories Inc.