SGT is part of a committee with court-appointed interim co-lead counsel representing direct purchaser plaintiff drug wholesalers Rochester Drug Co-Operative, Inc. (“Rochester Co-op”) and Dakota Drug, Inc. (“Dakota Drug”) in a proposed class action alleging that brand-name and generic EpiPen manufacturers and a group of pharmacy benefit managers (“PBMs”) conspired to maintain supracompetitiveprices for brand-name and generic EpiPens.
Specifically, Plaintiffs allege that as the EpiPen began to face competition, Mylan made concessions to PBMs to maintain favorable formulary status via rebates to the PBMs, thereby reducing the pharmacy benefit managers’ net costs for EpiPen prescriptions covered by their plans, but not reducing the list price paid by the wholesalers. Plaintiffs allege the rebates were kickbacks in violation of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute.
In January 2021, Judge Eric C. Tostrud denied in significant part Defendants’ motion to dismiss Plaintiffs’ complaint. Perhaps most significantly, the Court permitted Plaintiffs’ alleged violations of RICO by Defendants to proceed using the Travel Act as a predicate act.
The case is In re EpiPen Direct Purchaser Litigation, No. 20-CV-00827 and is pending before Hon. Eric. C. Tostrudin the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota.
