In a significant development, the Alaska Attorney General Treg Taylor announced that a nationwide settlement has been reached with Indivior Inc., the maker of Suboxone, a widely used medication for treating opioid addiction.
The settlement, amounting to $102.5 million, involves 42 states, and Alaska’s share will be approximately $1,065,000.
The legal action against Indivior Inc. was initiated in 2016 when the states collectively filed a complaint alleging that the pharmaceutical company had engaged in illegal practices to manipulate the market for Suboxone.
The complaint claimed Indivior had sought to eliminate competition from Suboxone tablets in favor of the film version, thereby attempting to secure a monopoly in the opioid addiction treatment market. The trial for this case had been scheduled for September 2023.
Attorney General Taylor said, “This has been a long case. It shows that the state Attorneys General are united and committed to making sure that there are consequences for drug companies, and other companies, that try to game the system at the expense of consumers.”
The agreement, subject to approval by the court in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, obligates Indivior Inc. to make a combined payment of $102.5 million to the participating states. Additionally, the company is required to adhere to specific injunctive terms that include the disclosure of all citizen petitions submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the introduction of new products, and any changes in corporate control. These measures aim to ensure that Indivior refrains from engaging in similar misconduct as alleged in the initial complaint.
Joining forces with Alaska in the settlement are Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, District of Columbia, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
