A key House Democrat endorsed the nationwide price-fixing lawsuit against 20 generic drugmakers and 15 executives.
Attorneys general in 44 states have filed suit against the nation’s largest generics makers and the allegations in the suits are “reprehensible,” said U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.).
Pallone chairs the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which just last week convened hearings into the drug supply chain, hoping to root out the causes of rising prescription drugs.
“Generic drugs are intended to bring competition to our marketplaces and provide access to affordable medications for all Americans, but this lawsuit suggests some manufacturers may have conspired to rig the system,” he said. “This behavior is unacceptable, and another example of how we must continue to find ways to prevent drug manufacturers from taking advantage of Americans.”
Federal officials have banked heavily on generics to lower costs of drugs—and both political parties agree that they’re an essential part of any solution. The states’ 524-page complaint alleges that executives at Teva, Sandoz, Mylan, Pfizer and 16 other companies of “a broad, coordinated and systematic campaign to conspire with each other to fix prices, allocate markets and rig bids for more than 100 different generic drugs.”
The drug companies have denied the allegations in the lawsuit.
