NJ: Parsippany Execs Fixed Medication Prices At Steakhouse Dinner

PARSIPPANY, NJ — The New Jersey Attorney General and 46 other states filed a lawsuit against 26 generic drug companies, including three in Parsippany, for conspiring to raise the prices of 80 topical drugs in violation of federal and state antitrust and consumer protection laws.

The three Parsippany companies were Actavis Holdco US, Inc., Wockhardt USA LLC, and Actavis Pharma, Inc.

The suit alleges that, from 2009 through early 2016, sales and pricing executives at the generic topical drug companies would meet and devise a plan to restrict competitors, share customers among themselves and significantly raise prices on dozens of generic topical drug products — such as creams, gels, lotions, ointments, shampoos and solutions.

Four of the nation's largest generic drug manufacturing companies — Taro Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc., Perrigo New York, Inc., Sandoz Inc. (formerly Fougera) and Actavis — were the leaders in the scheme while the other 22 companies played along, according to a release from the Office of Attorney General.

The high-level executives from many generic drug manufacturers would get together for regular "industry dinners" to collaborate on price-fixing tactics, according to the Attorney General.

One example of these "dinners" was in January 2014 when at least 13 high-ranking executives from companies Actavis, Aurobindo, Lannett, and Perrigo met at a steakhouse in Bridgewater, according to the suit.

A group e-mail exchange, quoted in the lawsuit, shows how one executive asks if his and his colleague's meals at the steakhouse will be paid for by a rival executive's company. The rival executive responds: "It's amazing how many in the group like 18-year-old single malt scotch when they aren't buying."

The lawsuit alleges violations of the Sherman Act, a federal antitrust law, as well as violations of numerous state laws, including New Jersey's Antitrust Act and Consumer Fraud Act. The lawsuit is looking for monetary relief and for the court to restore competition to the generic topical medications market.

"The price of many prescription drugs is too high. And our investigations have shown that the high prices for many generic drugs stem from illegal collusion among drug companies and executives," said Attorney General Gurbir Grewal. "I'm troubled to see New Jersey companies play such a big role in this outrageous conduct. As I've said before, New Jersey's pharmaceutical industry is the envy of the world. But we can't turn a blind eye when New Jersey businesses violate our laws and harm our residents just because they are headquartered here."

Here is a full list of the 26 generic drug companies listed in the lawsuit:

• Actavis Holdco US, Inc., Parsippany, NJ
• Actavis Elizabeth LLC, Elizabeth, NJ
• Actavis Pharma, Inc., Parsippany, NJ
• Amneal Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Bridgewater, NJ
• Amneal Pharmaceuticals LLC, Bridgewater, NJ
• Aurobindo Pharma USA, Inc., Dayton, NJ
• Bausch Health Americas, Inc., Bridgewater, NJ
• Bausch Health US LLC, Bridgewater, NJ
• Fougera Pharmaceuticals Inc., Melville, NY
• Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Inc., Mahwah, NJ
• Greenstone LLC, North Peapack, NJ
• G&W Laboratories, Inc., South Plainfield, NJ
• Lannett Company, Inc., Philadelphia, PA
• Lupin Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Baltimore, MD
• Mallinckrodt Inc., Webster Groves, MO
• Mallinckrodt plc, Staines-Upon-Thames, Surrey, UK
• Mallincrockdt, LLC, Hazelwood, MO
• Mylan, Inc., Canonsburg, PA
• Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc., Morgantown, WV
• Perrigo New York, Inc., Bronx, NY
• Pfizer, Inc., New York, NY
• Sandoz, Inc., Princeton, NJ
• Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, Inc., Cranbury, NJ
• Taro Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc., Hawthorne, NY
• Teligent, Inc., Buena, NJ

There were also several individual defendants named in the lawsuit from the area:

• Douglas Boothe, Chester – Chief Executive Officer at Actavis from August 2008 through December 2012; and Executive Vice President and General Manager, Pharmaceuticals at Perrigo New York from January 2013 through July 2016
• Kurt Orlofski, Mountain Lakes – President of G&W from September 2009 through December 2016
• Erica Vogel-Baylor, Milford – Vice President, Sales and Marketing at G&W since July 2011

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