Patient Charity Settles DOJ Allegations it Helped MS Drugmakers Pay Kickbacks

Orlando-based patient charity The Assistance Fund (TAF) agreed to pay $4 million to settle allegations that it helped pharmaceutical companies pay kickbacks to Medicare patients taking their multiple sclerosis drugs. TAF is the third foundation to settle allegations of kickbacks.

The Department of Justice alleged that the charity conspired with Teva, Biogen, and Novartis to operate a fund supposedly for Medicare patients with MS that was actually a “conduit for money” from the manufacturers to patients taking their drugs.

As part of the settlement, TAF entered into a three-year deal that requires it to operate independently and to ensure that its interactions with drugmaker donors comply with the law.