Cision PR Newswire

Lawsuit alleges unfair and deceptive trade practices inflate the price of insulin to create exorbitant profits that gouge district's beneficiary plans

SAN DIEGO, Nov. 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- On behalf of the Oceanside Unified District, Frantz Law Group filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California against pharmaceutical and pharmacy benefit companies. The lawsuit alleges that three pharmaceutical manufacturers – Eli Lily, Novo Nordisk, and Sanofi – and three pharmacy benefit managers – Express Scripts, CVS Caremark, and Optum RX – colluded to inflate the price of insulin paid by the district's self-funded health plan. The lawsuit describes a scheme in which pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) secure billions of dollars in rebates from pharmaceutical manufacturers in exchange for including their insulin products on the PBMs' list of approved drugs, known as formularies. Manufacturers then artificially raise their prices to pay for those rebates, shadowing each other in lockstep rather than competing to offer lower consumer prices. 

The lawsuit points out that insulin is a century-old medication, and while its production costs have decreased with little need for new investments in innovation, research, or development, its price has surged by more than 1000 percent since 2003. This dramatic increase is attributed to a pricing strategy involving pharmaceutical manufacturers and pharmacy benefit managers.

"Many people within the Oceanside Unified School District and across America rely on affordable insulin for their survival, and it's unacceptable for pharmaceutical companies and pharmacy benefits managers to manipulate insulin prices for the sake of excessive corporate profits," said James P. Frantz, CEO of Frantz Law Group. "Like many organizations with self-funded health plans, the Oceanside Unified School District should not be forced to pay inflated and unreasonable insulin prices created by a scheme between big pharma and benefits managers to engage in unfair and deceptive trade practices. This lawsuit aims to address these practices under state unfair business laws and federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization (RICO) laws."

About Frantz Law Group
Frantz Law Group is an award-winning personal injury, wrongful death, catastrophic injury, trucking litigation, mass tort, and class action law firm that has been serving clients for over 45 years. The firm has secured over three hundred multimillion-dollar individual settlements and jury verdicts; in which FLG worked with other law firms in winning several multibillion-dollar settlements that benefited thousands of victims.

Frantz Law Group has been ranked Tier 1 in U.S. News – Best Lawyers® "Best Law Firms" from 2010-2023 for mass tort litigation/class actions - plaintiffs. James P. Frantz is a fellow and associate of the American Board of Trial Advocates, is AV® rated by Martindale-Hubbell®, is a 20-year Special Master appointed by the State Bar of California, and a 20-year Master of The Enright Chapter, American Inns of Court. For more information, please visit www.frantzlawgroup.com.

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SOURCE Frantz Law Group