The largest amount of money the state of Texas has ever recovered for illegal drug marketing didn't come from a drug cartel, or gang.
After six years of investigations by Texas Attorney General's Civil Medicaid Fraud Division, the state recovered their largest amount ever after litigation .against Johnson & Johnson Inc. and its subsidiary Janssen Pharmaceutica Inc.
The settlement totalled more than $48 million.
Attorney General Greg Abbott’s investigation team centered on the Johnson & Johnson’s efforts to market the atypical antipsychotic drug, Risperdal.
Johnson & Johnson urged doctors to prescribe the drug for purposes not approved by the FDA.
Evidence showed some children in the Texas Medicaid program were targeted for Risperdal prescriptions “despite the fact that they suffered from conditions for which no rigorous scientific testing necessary had been done to prove the drug safe and effective for those conditions.”
Janssen and Johnson & Johnson settled after an eight day Travis County District Court trial in January 2012.
“Janssen and Johnson & Johnson paid more than $48 million to reimburse Texas taxpayers for the unlawful and deceptive conduct,” indicated the AG Office.
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott and his Medicaid Fraud team have earned a first-rate national reputation for their crackdowns on health fraud, especially with pharmaceutical manufacturers.
In the last ten years, they have recovered over $400 million for Texas and total recoveries for the state and the federal governments now exceed $1 billion.
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