Case Caption: In re Insulin Pricing Litig.
Court: United States District Court for the District of New JerseyÂ
Case Number: 2:2023-md-03080
Judge: Honorable Brian R. Martinotti
Plaintiff: Local 837 Health and Welfare Plan
Defendant: Eli Lilly And Company; Novo Nordisk Inc.; Sanofi-Aventis U.S. Llc; Cvs Health Corporation; Caremark, Llc; Caremarkpcs Health, Llc; Evernorth Health, Inc.; Express Scripts, Inc.; Express Scripts Administrators, Llc; Medco Health Solutions, Inc.; Unitedhealth Group, Inc.; Optum, Inc.; Optumrx, Inc.;
Plaintiff asserts individual and class claims on behalf of third-party payors (“TPPs”) that paid inflated prices for insulin due to an unlawful scheme by drug manufacturers and pharmacy benefit managers (“PBMs”) to artificially inflate the price of insulin. Plaintiff asserts claims under RICO and various state consumer protection statutes, alleging that the manufacturers and PBMs—who together control the vast majority of the prescription drug market—conspired to artificially, deceptively, and unfairly manipulate the list prices for insulin and induced Plaintiffs and other TPPs to include Defendants’ insulin products on their formularies. The case is one of the first of its kind against PBMs for their role in conspiring with manufacturers to unlawfully raise list prices. The higher prices, which are passed on to TPPs, allow the PBMs to reap huge profits in the form of rebates, calculated as a percentage of the drug’s list price.
Plaintiff’s case was recently subsumed within a wide-ranging MDL created in the District of New Jersey. In 2023, KTMC’s Melissa L. Yeates was appointed by the Court as Interim Class Counsel/Co-Lead Counsel for the TPP PBM Class. In early 2024, Plaintiff will file a Consolidated Amended Complaint, brief motions to dismiss, and begin fact discovery.