posted on Feb, 26 2010 @ 02:33 PM
The Alliance for Human Research
Protection prepared ,
Trouble for Big Pharma over the last few years:
2001: "TAP-Astra Zeneca Pay Over a Billion Dollar in Fines" -- re: criminal
marketing of Lupron.
2002: Pfizer paid $49 million to settle state and federal Medicaid fraud charges
involving Lipitor.
2002: Schering-..Plough signed a FDA consent decree and paid a $500 million fine --
the biggest in FDA history -- for violating manufacturing standards.
2004: Schering-..Plough paid $345 million to resolve criminal and civil liabilities
for illegal marketing of Calritin.
2004: Pfizer admitted criminal marketing of Neurontin, agreeing to pay $420
million.
2003: Bayer pled guilty to violating the federal Prescription Drug Marketing Act,
paying $257 million including a criminal fine for its marketing of Cipro.
2004: Merck withdrew its lethal painkiller, Vioxx. Estimates are that it would cost
the company $50 billion.
2004: The IRS served Merck with a "preliminary notice of deficiency" that could
lead to $2.04 billion payment for back taxes.
2003: GlaxoSmithKline.. shareholders questioned GSK CEO, Jean-Pierre Garnier, about
his pay package to which he responded: "I am not Mother Teresa." GlaxoSmithKline..
also ran afoul of the IRS -- it is facing a demand for $7.8 billion in backdated
taxes and interest.
2003: GSK signed a corporate integrity agreement and paid $88 million in a civil
fine for overcharging Medicaid for the antidepressant,.. Paxil and nasal-allergy
spray, Flonase.
2004: New York State Attorney General slapped GSK with fraudulent marketing of
Paxil -- the company settled and posted its previously concealed pediatric clinical
trial data.
2005: the Justice Department announced that GSK had paid "over $150 million to
resolve allegations of violations to the False Claims Act through fraudulent drug
pricing and marketing."
2004: Bristol-Myers Squibb was ordered by the Securities and Exchange Commission to
pay $150 million to settle charges of inflating its revenue by $1.5 billion in 2000
and 2001. A separate criminal investigation by the U.S. Attorney General's Office
in NJ resulted in the indictment of two executives for securities fraud -- the
company agreed to pay $300 million to shareholders.
2000: Wyeth signed an FDA Consent Decree and paid $30 million for failing to comply
with Good Manufacturing Practice.
1997: after pulling Pondimin and Redux off the market because of heart valve
damage, Wyeth was forced to set aside $21.1 billion to settle "fen-phen" liability
cases.
2005: Serono Laboratories (Switzerland) agreed to pay $704 million to resolve
criminal and civil charges in connection with the marketing of Serostim, an AIDS
drug. The company also pled guilty to marketing conspiracy.
2005: Eli Lilly pled guilty and paid $36 million for its illegal marketing of
Evista for off-label uses.