Ohio receiving over $5 million in settlement with maker of opioid addiction treatment drug, Suboxone
A settlement has been reached in court in the case against a company called Indivior Inc. for its marketing of Suboxone.
The company was sued by 41 states and the District of Columbia for violations of antitrust laws.
What is Suboxone?
It’s a prescription drug that rose to the top of the market in 2002 and is used to treat opioid addiction by easing cravings for opioids.
It was introduced as a tablet by a pharmaceutical company called Indivior Inc. and patent-protected until 2009.
Then, to try and retain patent protection, the company started changing Suboxone from a tablet to a dissolve-in-the-mouth film.
To keep their product on top of the market, Indivior actively tried to destroy the need for any competing tablets by making price adjustments on Suboxone and marketing against possible competitors, the lawsuit said.
The states allege this is an example of product hopping, making changes to a product to keep patent protection and delay any generic competitors from being made, costing people money while making the company wealthy.
What did Indivior do?
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost’s office explained that 43 states got involved in the “product hopping” case against Indivior.
They’re accusing the company of scheming to block generic versions from being made by blocking competitors from the market after the patented-protected period.
This means the company purposefully kept elevating the drug’s costs to consumers by not allowing a generic version to be manufactured, costing consumers valuable money.
“My office has the pharmaceutical industry under a microscope,” Yost said. “From drug manufacturers to PBMs to distributors – we’re keeping a close eye on everyone involved.”
What does the settlement say?
Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul led the case. The settlement, filed in the U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, requires Indivior to pay the 42 states $102.5 million instead of going to trial in September of this year.
Ohio will receive about $5.9 million of the settlement money.
Indivior will still be allowed to make products but has new accountability rules to follow.
After the settlement agreement, Indivior must disclose any product modifications and changes in corporate control to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the attorneys general.
For more, read the multistate settlement agreement here.
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