By Mike Scarcella
WASHINGTON, March 5 (Reuters) – Two Johnson & Johnson units have agreed to pay $65 million to settle a proposed antitrust class action by health plans and others claiming they were overcharged for the pulmonary hypertension drug Tracleer.
The preliminary settlement with Actelion Pharmaceuticals and Janssen Research & Development was filed on Wednesday in the federal court in Maryland. The proposal requires approval from a judge.
The plaintiffs, including the Government Employees Health Association and other entities that paid or provided reimbursement for their members’ use of Tracleer, alleged in their lawsuit that the drugmakers delayed competition for a generic version of the medication.
Actelion made billions of dollars in profits from selling Tracleer, an oral treatment for pulmonary artery hypertension. Johnson & Johnson in 2017 completed its acquisition of Actelion. Janssen is also a part of Johnson & Johnson.
Johnson & Johnson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Sharon Robertson, a lead attorney for the plaintiffs, said the settlement will provide “meaningful relief” for the class of so-called third-party payors that purchased Tracleer and its generic version over the span of nearly a decade.
The defendants denied any wrongdoing in agreeing to settle the case, which was first filed in 2018.
The lawsuit alleged the drugmakers impeded competitor access to samples of Tracleer, which they said “effectively blocked competitors from bringing a competing generic product to market for a period of time.”
The settlement covers Tracleer purchases in 31 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico between December 2015 and September 2024.
The plaintiffs said they plan to seek up to about 33% of the settlement fund for legal fees, or about $21 million.
The case is Government Employees Health Association v. Actelion Pharmaceuticals Ltd et al, U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, No. 1:18-cv-03560-GLR.
For plaintiffs: Sharon Robertson of Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll; and Thomas Sobol of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro
For defendants: William Cavanaugh Jr of Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler; and Shari Ross Lahlou of Dechert
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(Reporting by Mike Scarcella)
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