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Judge Orders Class-Action Against CIGNA to Proceed

March 16, 2018

A federal judge refused a motion by CIGNA to dismiss a class-action lawsuit alleging it artificially inflated the cost of prescription drugs.

The lawsuit was filed in October 2016 on behalf of five CIGNA beneficiaries from Massachusetts, Washington, Louisiana and New Jersey who accused the insurer of conspiring with its pharmacy benefit manager OptumRX to misrepresent drug costs, increasing patient charges and claiming “clawbacks” for a larger portion of what patients paid them.

The lawsuit cites examples, including a November 2014 incident when a plaintiff paid the pharmacy a $20 copay for amlodipine besylate, a 1,043 percent markup from the $1.75 paid to the pharmacist. The plaintiffs accuse the companies of violating the Employee Retirement Income Security Act and Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act.

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