Judge Shoots Down PBM Call for Dismissal of EpiPen Pricing Suit

A proposed class action suit alleging that multiple pharmacy benefit managers are responsible for Mylan’s price hike of EpiPen will move forward, after a Minnesota federal judge denied requests to have the case thrown out.

Participants in ERISA-governed health plans that used EpiPens for severe allergies filed the class action in Minnesota District Court against Prime Therapeutics, Express Scripts, CVS Health and other PBMs, alleging that their negotiations caused Mylan to raise EpiPen prices while they collected millions of dollars in rebates and other payments.

Specifically, the plaintiffs said the benefit managers violated sections of ERISA because they failed to meet their fiduciary obligations to their clients and engaged in fiduciary self-dealing by pocketing rebates. Their actions led to huge out-of-pocket costs for EpiPen, they said.