On July 5, 2012, the Associated Press published an article regarding the recent approval of the biggest settlement of health care fraud in U.S. history. On Thursday, July 5, U.S. District Judge Rya Zobel approved GlaxoSmithKline’s agreement to pay $3 billion toward violations concerning ten of the company’s drugs.
GlaxoSmithKline, a British drug manufacturer, pled guilty to promoting numerous drugs for unapproved uses. The company marketed the antidepressant Paxil for use in children and teens. However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had not approved Paxil for use in these patient populations.
The drug manufacturer also failed to disclose safety problems to the government. GlaxoSmithKline admitted in court that it did not report safety issues with the diabetes drug Avandia to the government. Avandia has shown to increase the risk of heart attack and heart failure in patients taking the drug.
See the full Associated Press article at:
