Alabama among 42 states in $102.5M settlement with Suboxone maker

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) - Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall announced Tuesday that 42 states have negotiated a nationwide $102.5 million settlement with the maker of Suboxone, Indivior Inc. Alabama will receive $1,392,964 from the settlement.

“Indivior Inc. illegally exploited the market to maintain its monopoly of Suboxone, restricting critical access to this lifesaving drug,” said Marshall. “I will continue to hold drug manufacturers accountable when they break the law and harm our people.”

In 2016, the states filed a complaint against Indivior Inc. alleging that they used illegal means to switch the Suboxone market from tablets to film while attempting to destroy the market for tablets, in order to preserve its drug monopoly.

The agreement, which will be submitted to the court in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania for approval, requires Indivior to pay the States $102.5 million. Indivior Inc. is also required to comply with negotiated injunctive terms that include disclosures to the states of all citizen petitions to the FDA, introduction of new products, or if there is a change in corporate control, which will help the States ensure that Indivior Inc. refrains from engaging in the same kind of conduct alleged in the complaint.

In addition to Alabama, the lawsuit was led by Wisconsin and joined by Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, District of Columbia, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and West Virginia.

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