MO to receive $948K in drug company settlement

Attorney General Chris Koster's office has secured $948,385 for the state of Missouri as part of a 37-state settlement reached with pharmaceutical companies GlaxoSmithKline LLC, of the United Kingdom, and one of its subsidiaries, SB Pharmco Puerto Rico.

The settlement was reached after allegations claimed that GSK and SB Pharmco engaged in unfair and deceptive practices when manufacturing and distributing certain batches of Kytril, a drug used to prevent nausea and vomiting caused by cancer chemotherapy and radiation therapy; Bactroban, an antibiotic ointment used to treat skin infections; Paxil CR, the controlled release version of antidepressant drug, Paxil; and Avandamet, a combination Type II diabetes drug, according to a news release from Koster's office.

The drugs were produced at a plant in Cidra, Puerto Rico, which was closed in 2009. The companies allegedly used substandard manufacturing processes in producing certain lots of the drugs.

"Pharmaceutical companies will be held accountable for practices that endanger the health of consumers,” Koster said in the release. “This settlement will cause drug manufacturers to review their production practices and ensure that unsafe products are not put into the marketplace.”       

The companies will pay $40.75 million in accordance with the settlement.  GSK and SB Pharmco also agreed not to make false, misleading or deceptive claims regarding the manufacturing of any types of drugs formerly manufactured at the Cidra plant, according to the release.[[In-content Ad]]