Insys Pays Millions to Settle Bribery Probe

Insys announced Wednesday it reached an agreement with the Justice Department to pay $150 million over five years to settle allegations that it bribed doctors to prescribe its fentanyl sublingual spray Subsys.

"This is a very important step for our company to move forward and continue our transformative efforts to foster a compliant and ethical culture,” Insys President and CEO Saeed Motahari said in a statement.

The announcement of the tentative deal came as a former Insys district sales manager, Jeffrey Pearlman, pleaded guilty in a Connecticut federal court this week to participating in the same kickback scheme to prescribe Subsys, the company’s fentanyl spray indicated for treatment of pain in cancer patients.