By Mike Scarcella
Feb 18 (Reuters) - Swiss generic drug manufacturer Sandoz has agreed to pay $275 million to resolve claims by U.S. consumers and others who accused the company of conspiring with industry rivals to illegally fix prices.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs, including the City of Providence, Rhode Island and a New York City police employee benefits plan, asked U.S. District Judge Cynthia Rufe in Philadelphia on Friday to approve the settlement.
Sandoz denied any wrongdoing in agreeing to settle. The company said it will cooperate with the plaintiffs as they pursue claims against other drugmakers.
The antitrust case includes several drug makers that were not part of Friday's settlement, including Pfizer, Teva and Lupin. The companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment and have denied wrongdoing.
Sandoz and attorneys for the plaintiffs, "end-purchasers" including consumers who bought Sandoz drugs from pharmacies, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The settlement period covers some purchases between 2009 and 2019 for drugs, including the antidepressants amitriptyline and clomipramine, and for clobetasol, which is used to treat some skin conditions.
The settlement class likely includes millions of members with claims tied to Sandoz’s alleged price-fixing, the plaintiffs' lawyers told the court.
Their court filing said “continued litigation of the claims against Sandoz would be protracted and without guarantee of any recovery.”
The attorneys said they will seek up to $91.6 million in legal fees and $26 million in litigation expenses.
Sandoz last year agreed to pay $265 million to resolve related claims lodged in the litigation by a group of wholesale drug purchasers and others.
The case is In re Generic Pharmaceuticals Pricing Antitrust Litigation, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, No. 2:16-MD-02724.
For end-payor class: Roberta Liebenberg and Jeffrey Istvan of Fine, Kaplan and Black
For Sandoz: Matthew Kent of Alston & Bird
Read more:
Drugmakers Apotex, Heritage to pay $49 mln to resolve states' price-fixing claims
Ex-Sandoz exec gets probation for price-fixing after cooperation deal
US drops price-fixing case against former Taro Pharmaceutical executive
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