HARRISBURG, Pa., July 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Attorney General Jerry Pappert today announced that nearly 2,400 Pennsylvanians will receive approximately $1.6 million in restitution checks this week, as part of a national settlement with New York-based drug maker Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS). The company was accused of manipulating the federal patent process to extend its monopoly on the widely prescribed anti-anxiety drug BuSpar.
The average reimbursement check for Pennsylvanians who applied for a refund is $660. Restitution was available for consumers who purchased BuSpar between January 1, 1998 and January 31, 2003.
In December 2001, Attorneys General from 28 states and Puerto Rico filed a lawsuit against BMS for allegedly violating federal and applicable antitrust, consumer protection and unfair competition laws of the various states.
The suit accused BMS of unlawfully maintaining a monopoly on the anti- anxiety drug by knowingly making erroneous statements to the Food and Drug Administration that prevented the agency from giving final approval to other drug makers who were ready to produce the generic equivalent of BuSpar at a lower cost.
"The states' argued that the illegal manipulation of the patent process resulted in consumers and state agencies paying much higher prices for the drug, by denying the generic drug companies a chance to enter the marketplace when they legally were entitled to compete," Pappert said. "That delay, in our view, cost consumers and the states millions of dollars. Those hardest hit were consumers without insurance who were forced to spend hundreds of dollars more than they should have to get their prescribed medicine."
By March 2003, seven additional states and the District of Columbia had joined the multi-state suit and were included in the $100 million national settlement with BMS. The settlement included $50 million in damages to reimburse the states' Medicaid programs and other agencies, $40 million to establish a nationwide consumer restitution fund and $10 million to assist the states with the costs associated with the restitution fund.
"The most significant part of the agreement is the money my office has returned to individuals and government agencies," Pappert said. "The restitution represents savings that would have occurred for BuSpar purchasers had the drug company not engaged in conduct that we contend was unjust and illegal."
The settlement also bars BMS, for a 10-year period, from engaging in anti- competitive conduct that would result in delaying generic versions of its drugs from entering the marketplace.
Pappert urged the nearly 2,400 consumers who applied for reimbursement to watch for their check in the mail this week. Pennsylvania ranked ninth among the participating states for the number of refund claims filed. The total number of verified refund claims was 57,474. The total amount to be paid to consumers from the fund was $37.2 million.
CONTACT: BARBARA PETITO DEPUTY PRESS SECRETARY 717-787-5211
Pennsylvania Office of Attorney GeneralCONTACT: Barbara Petito, Deputy Press Secretary of the PennsylvaniaOffice of Attorney General, +1-717-787-5211, or home, +1-717-236-6264
Web site: http://www.attorneygeneral.gov/
