The state of New Hampshire has recently been awarded the sum of $1.7 million against GlaxosmithKline, the makers of the popular antidepressant drug Paxil.
The lawsuit was brought against two prescription drug makers because the state claims that their Medicaid Program was billed for drugs like Paxil that were marketed wrong and for drugs that were in some cases of substandard quality. Glaxo has to pay its share of the money because it was decided that at least four of the drugs that the company was marketing back from 2001-2005, including Paxil weren’t as strong or as pure as they were supposed to be. These standards were in accordance to what the FDA deems as appropriate.
Jeff Cahill, The Senior Assistant Attorney general pointed out the fact that no one in New Hampshire was hurt due to the drug fraud. Cahill also said that the investigation into the matter really started when whistleblowers told the federal authorities about how the drug manufacturer was acting with regards to the sale. The share that New Hampshire received as part of the settlement money is just a small piece of a much larger pie. It comes from a national case that was filed against against both of the drug makers.
What it boils down to in a nutshell according to Cahill is that, “The states didn’t get what they paid for.” At least some of the money that was awarded in this settlement is toward penalties because of the abuses. Glaxo has been under fire a lot lately because of its handling and marketing of the drug Paxil and Avandia. They have had numerous lawsuits filed against them because of it. Recently they admitted to manufacturing violations that involved of Paxil in their Puerto Rico plant and were fined $750 million in damages. For now at least, the hits keep on coming for GlaxoSmithKline over Paxil.
