Roche has agreed to pay $20M to settle a whistleblower complaint filed
by an ex-manager who claimed that the drug Rituxan was marketed off-label
and that Medicaid and Medicare ended up making payments for the immunosupressant
that were unnecessary because of Roche is a unit of Genentech. Per the
Pennsylvania whistleblower lawsuit, which was filed by former sales development
senior manager John Underwood, Genentech encouraged doctors and medical
providers to bill government reimbursement programs for ‘off-label’
uses of the drug and make it appear that their recommendation were arrived
at independently.
During the period of time cited by Underwood (between 2000 and 2002),
the Food and Drug Administration approved Rituxan to treat refractory/relapsed
low-grade non-Hodgkins lymphoma and other types of non-Hodgkins lymphoma
( rheumatoid arthritis, lymphocytic leukemia, and follicular lymphoma
have since been added to the drug’s label.) However, Underwood says
that Genentech encouraged that Rituxan be used to treat a number of conditions
that were off-label, including chronic lymphocytic leukemia, autoimmune
hemolytic anemia, idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, and rheumatoid
arthritis.
Underwood also accused the drug maker of hiring doctors to “independently”
speak about Rituxan and promote these off-label purposes. The physicians
were paid consulting fees that were actually kickbacks and it was their
job to get sales reps to also push the drug’s off-label uses. Many
doctors were invited to educational seminars at “luxurious”
sites, and physicians were retained to conduct workshops to teach salespersons
“selling skills.” Sales reps also were allegedly offered financial
incentives.
Filing a whistleblower lawsuit allows a US citizen to help expose fraud
involving other(s) submitting a false claim to get the government to pay.
Under the False Claims Act, a person who files a Qui Tam/whistleblower
complaint may be eligible to receive up to 30% of whatever is recovered.
Underwood’s share of the $20 million settlement is $5.7 million.
Genentech has also agreed to pay for Underwood’s legal fees and
expenses. However, the drug manufacturer is not admitting to or denying
wrongdoing by settling.
As a potential whistleblower it is important you keep the information
you know that exposes fraud against the government private and that you
talk to an experience whistleblower law firm immediately. Also, you should
know that False Claims Act protects whistleblowers that come forward from
retaliation.This means that if you were fired or placed on leave because
you blew the whistle, you may be entitled to twice the amount of wages
that you ended up losing.
Genentech settles Rituxan whistleblower suit for $20M, BizJournals, December 2, 2011
Roche Pays $20M To Settle Whistleblower Lawsuit, Pharmalot, December 2, 2011
Rituxan
Roche
Federal False Claims Act
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Product Liability Law Blog, October 30, 2011
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in Inflatable Pool Slide Death, Product Liability Law Blog, October 26, 2011
Our whistleblower lawyers at The Gilbert Law Group® represent clients throughout the US.
