Pharmaceutical manufacturer Teva Pharmaceuticals USA Inc. and a subsidiary, IVAX LLC, have agreed to pay the government and the state of Illinois $27.6 million for allegedly violating the False Claims Act by making payments to induce prescriptions of an anti-psychotic drug for Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries . Teva Pharmaceuticals USA is located in North Wales, Pa., and IVAX LLC is a Florida company.
“The Department of Justice is committed to ensuring that pharmaceutical manufacturers who make payments to doctors to influence prescribing decisions are held accountable,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division Stuart F. Delery. “Schemes such as the one alleged in this case undermine the health care system and take advantage of vulnerable patients.”
“ Pharmaceutical companies must not be allowed to improperly influence physicians’ decisions in prescribing medication for their patients,” said U.S. Attorney Zachary T. Fardon for the Northern District of Illinois. “Instead, those decisions must be made solely on the basis of the patient’s best medical interests.”