Pharmaceutical Company to Pay $3.5M to Resolve Allegations of Paying Kickbacks to Doctors

Former Sales Rep turned Whistleblower alleged company provided dermatologists with gifts, meals, and excessive fees in exchange for prescriptions

This settlement resolves allegations in a lawsuit filed in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania by a former Aqua sales representative, under the qui tam (or whistleblower) provisions of the False Claims Act. The qui tam provisions permit private parties to sue for false claims on behalf of the government and to receive a share of any recovery. read more »

Johnson & Johnson accused of 'cynical, deceitful' bid to drive up painkiller sales

Johnson & Johnson, one of the world’s largest drug companies, has been accused of “a cynical, deceitful multimillion dollar brainwashing campaign” to drive up sales of its powerful painkillers at the opening of the first trial of a pharmaceutical giant over the US opioid epidemic.

Oklahoma’s attorney general, Mike Hunter, told the civil trial, which opened on Tuesday, that Johnson & Johnson played a leading role in “the worst man-made health crisis in the history of the country and the state”.

“How did it happen?” Hunter asked. “Greed.” read more »

Mexico issues arrest warrant for former head of Pemex

Mexico’s government has issued an arrest warrant for the former director of the country’s state-run oil company, the state news agency reported Tuesday. The arrest of former Pemex director Emilio Lozoya on corruption charges would be the boldest yet by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador — and one likely to antagonize Mexico’s political elite.

The warrant comes a day after Mexico’s government announced it was freezing Lozoya’s bank account and the bank account of one of Mexico’s largest steel companies, Altos Hornos de Mexico, or AHMSA. The government said in a statement that the accounts included funds “presumed to be derived from acts of corruption.” read more »