Courtesy: Gilead Sciences
Gilead Sciences agreed to pay $202 million to the U.S. government and various states to settle claims the drugmaker used speaker programs to pay kickbacks to doctors to induce them to prescribe Gilead’s expensive antiretroviral medications to patients with HIV, prosecutors announced Tuesday.
Gilead gave the money to doctors who spoke at the events in the form of honoria payments, meal and travel expenses, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Manhattan.
In return, the company sought to induce those doctors to prescribe the company’s drugs, which include Biktarvy, Stribild, Genvoya, Complera, Odefsey and Descovy, the office said.
The arrangement, which violated the U.S. Anti-Kickback Statute, caused so-called false claims to be made for Gileads drugs to be paid for by federal health-care programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid, the office noted.
“For years, Gilead unlawfully sought to increase sales of its HIV drugs, by using its speaker programs to funnel kickbacks to doctors,” interim Manhattan U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton said in a statement.
“Gilead spent tens of millions of dollars on these programs, including over $20 million in speaking fees and millions more in exorbitant meals, alcohol and travel, all in an effort to induce doctors to prescribe Gilead’s HIV drugs and drive up sales,” Clayton said.
The settlement, which calls for Gilead to pay the U.S. nearly $177 million and the balance of to various states, was approved Monday in U.S. District Court in Manhattan by Judge Paul Engelmayer.
A spokesperson for Gilead did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CNBC.
— CNBC’s Annika Kim Constantino contributed to this story.
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