GSK Sues Abbott Over HIV Drug Price Hike

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has joined HIV patients and retailers in suing Abbott Laboratories for its 2003 Norvir price hike, saying the move harmed competition.

Abbott increased Norvir’s (ritonavir) price by 400 percent shortly after winning approval for a new HIV drug combining ritonavir with protease inhibitor Kaletra (lopinavir/ritonavir), according to GSK’s Nov. 8 complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

Norvir was not very effective as a stand-alone treatment and, therefore, is used to boost the effectiveness of other protease inhibitors, including ones marketed by GSK, the company said. Abbott allowed companies to license the ability to promote drugs meant to be used with Norvir.

Two weeks after GSK launched its new protease inhibitor Lexiva (fosamprenavir calcium) — meant to be boosted with Norvir — Abbott raised the price of Norvir, driving up the cost of using Lexiva, GSK said. HIV patients using protease inhibitors were forced to switch to Kaletra, the price of which did not change.

GSK claimed the price hike was meant to eliminate competition and strengthen Abbott’s monopoly, therefore violating the Sherman Act and state antitrust laws. GSK asked the court to award treble damages and injunctive relief.

Abbott spokesman Scott Stoffel called the lawsuit “without merit.”