Amgen (AMGN) has failed in an attempt to restrict an investigation by prosecutors holding criminal grand jury hearings into the contents of several employee whistleblower cases, including one which alleges Amgen paid $1.5 million to suppress testimony at a trial which established the company’s patent rights to Epogen, a kidney drug. The federal court ruling allows prosecutors to continue talking to past and current Amgen employees without management’s permission. Epogen, which treats anemia in kidney dialysis patients, made $2.5 billion for Amgen in 2010.
