Office of the
Illinois Attorney General
Kwame Raoul

Chicago – Attorney General Kwame Raoul today, as part of a coalition of 43 states and territories, sought court approval of a $400 million settlement with Sandoz Inc. (Sandoz) and Fougera Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Fougera). The settlement will resolve allegations that the generic drug manufacturers engaged in widespread, long-running conspiracies to artificially inflate and manipulate prices, reduce competition and unreasonably restrain trade with regard to numerous generic prescription drugs. The settlement will also require paying an additional total of $69 million to prior settling states.

“At a time of skyrocketing costs for Americans, generic drug companies colluded with each other to raise prices on needed medications simply to line their own pockets,” Raoul said. “I am pleased with today’s settlement with Sandoz and will continue to hold drug manufacturers accountable for their unfair and unlawful practices.”

Under the terms of the agreement, filed today in the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut, Sandoz will pay approximately $469 million to settlement claims brought by state enforcers. The settlement will also resolve allegations that Sandoz’s past and present international affiliates – Novartis AG, Sandoz AG and Sandoz Group AG – participated in the alleged anticompetitive conduct and fraudulently transferred assets to avoid liability. As part of the settlement, Sandoz has agreed to meaningful injunctive terms including a series of internal reforms to ensure fair competition and compliance with antitrust laws.

Today’s settlement comes after Raoul and a coalition of nearly all states and territories filed three separate lawsuits against nearly 50 large generic drug manufacturers, alleging they engaged in a broad, coordinated and systematic campaign to conspire with each other to fix prices, allocate markets and rig bids for hundreds of different generic drugs. These lawsuits allege multiple conspiracies in which executives of competing companies would negotiate illegal agreements during industry dinners, trade shows and customer conferences. They also communicated via frequent telephone calls, emails and text messages, where they discussed allocating customers and coordinating price increases on the products they had in common. Throughout these conspiracies, defendants used terms like “fair share,” “playing fair” and “rules of engagement” to describe how they unlawfully discouraged competition, raised prices and enforced an ingrained culture of collusion.

The included drugs span all types, including tablets, capsules, suspensions, creams, gels and ointments, and classes, including statins, ace inhibitors, beta blockers, antibiotics, anti-depressants, contraceptives and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, used to treat a range of diseases and conditions from basic infections to diabetes, cancer, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, HIV, ADHD and more. In some instances, the coordinated price increases were over 1,000%.

Raoul and the participating states have secured settlements with Glenmark, Lannett, Bausch, Apotex and Heritage totaling approximately $96.5 million. This latest settlement comes as the states prepare for an anticipated trial in 2027. Today’s settlement will resolve allegations against Sandoz while the cases against the remaining defendants continue.

Raoul is reminding Illinoisans that purchased a generic prescription drug between May 2009 and December 2019 that they may be eligible for compensation. To determine eligibility, individuals are encouraged to call 1-866-290-0182, email info@AGGenericDrugs.com or visit www.AGGenericDrugs.com. Claims for compensation can be submitted here. 

Joining Raoul in securing this settlement in principle are the attorneys general of Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, the Northern Mariana Islands, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.