Lawsuit Against Valeant Questions Prescribing Practices

Monday, August 22, 2016 | 0

Valeant Pharmaceuticals has been accused of securities fraud in a lawsuit that claims the drugmaker refilled patient prescriptions without their permission and steered them away from less expensive generic drugs.

Mutual fund giant T. Rowe Price Group, a major Valeant shareholder, filed the lawsuit against Valeant and its top executives in U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey last Monday.

The lawsuit cites former employees who detail how Valeant partnered with mail-order pharmacy Philidor Rx Services LLC, which allegedly routed prescriptions to brand-name drugs while concealing less-expensive generic versions, Bloomberg reported. Philidor employees would allegedly leave messages for patients saying their prescriptions would be refilled unless the pharmacy heard back from them.

The lawsuit accuses the Canada-based drugmaker of running a fraudulent scheme that destroyed billions of dollars in shareholder value.

A Valeant spokeswoman told Bloomberg that the company couldn’t comment on ongoing litigation, but that it plans to defend itself.