US: Files first charges in generic drug price-fixing probe

The Justice Department accused two executives of colluding with other generic pharmaceutical companies to fix prices, the first criminal charges stemming from a sweeping two-year investigation.

Jeffrey Glazer, a former chief executive officer of Heritage Pharmaceuticals, and Jason Malek, an ex-president, were charged in Philadelphia, according to court filings unsealed on Wednesday. Each were charged in a criminal information with two counts of conspiring with other drug makers to fix the prices of an antibiotic and a drug used to treat diabetes. An information is often used as part of a plea agreement with prosecutors.

From April 2013 to at least December 2015, Glazer and Malek conspired with others in the production and sale of generics including doxycycline hyclate and glyburide, according to the court papers.

“Millions of Americans rely on prescription medications to treat acute and chronic health conditions,” Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brent Snyder of the Justice Department’s antitrust division said in a statement. The charges are an important step “in ensuring that generic pharmaceutical companies compete vigorously to provide these essential products at a price set by the market, not by collusion.”

Representatives for Heritage, which is privately held, weren’t immediately available to comment.

Full Content: Bloomberg

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