Connecticut is leading a major effort to hold generic drug manufacturers responsible for the rising cost of pharmaceuticals.
Attorneys general from 44 states are suing members of that industry for the manipulation of prices for 114 different generic drugs.
“We have emails, text messages, phone records, in-person meetings, cooperating witnesses that demonstrate conclusively and without a doubt that the major drug manufacturers including the largest generic drug manufacturer in the world, Teva, are openly and brazenly colluding on price and they’re dividing up market share,” said Connecticut Attorney General William Tong.
A spokesperson for Teva Pharmaceutical Industries told Connecticut Public Radio that the company denies that it has done anything “that would lead to civil or criminal liability.”
Tong said there’s no timetable on when the lawsuit will be resolved, but he said he hopes it will help consumers understand why healthcare and prescription drugs are so expensive – in his view, the market is rigged.
