MT. PLEASANT, S.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Richardson, Patrick, Westbrook & Brickman, LLC (RPWB) announced today that a United States District Court certified a national class action suit filed by RPWB and its co-counsel that accuses the nation’s largest drug wholesaler, McKesson Corporation, of inflating the prices of hundreds of brand-name prescription drugs, including blockbuster drugs such as Prozac, Lipitor, and Vioxx.
The U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts certified the class action suit on behalf of cities, counties, and other municipalities that overpaid for medications as a result of McKesson’s alleged scheme. Specifically, the Court certified the case for liability for those non-state and non-federal governmental entities that paid for the drugs at issue from August 1, 2001 to June 2, 2005. The Court certified the same class for a period beginning August 1, 2001 to December 31, 2003 for damages.
The suit alleges that McKesson intentionally inflated the AWPs of hundreds of brand-name drugs, which resulted in government entities being overcharged. The AWP is a benchmark price utilized throughout the pharmaceutical industry and refers to the average price at which wholesalers sell drugs to physicians, pharmacies, and other customers.
The damages in the case could total hundreds of millions of dollars, which are subject to trebling under the federal RICO statute. McKesson previously settled a similar class action suit on behalf of consumers and private payors for $350 million.
RPWB and Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro, LLP have been appointed Co-Lead Counsel for the plaintiffs. McCulley McCluer, PLLC, and Kotchen & Low, LLP serve on Plaintiffs’ Executive Committee. The named plaintiffs for the certified class are the Board of County Commissioners of Douglas County, Kansas; the City of Baltimore, Maryland; the City of Panama City, Florida; Anoka County, Minnesota; the City of Columbia, South Carolina; and the City of Goldsboro, North Carolina.
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RPWB has significant expertise representing plaintiffs in sophisticated civil litigation in areas such as antitrust and deceptive trade practices, securities, consumer lending, asbestos, catastrophic personal injury, pharmaceutical and medical devices, products liability, and environmental. RPWB has offices in Barnwell, Charleston, and Mt. Pleasant, S.C.