Abbott unit to pay $41 million to settle kickback, off-label claims from US whistleblower suit
This article was originally published in Scrip
Executive Summary
Abbott Laboratories has agreed to pay $41 million to resolve criminal and civil charges that its Kos Pharmaceuticals unit engaged in kickbacks and off-label marketing related to Advicor (niacin-extended release plus lovastatin tablets) and Niaspan (niacin extended-release), the US Department of Justice (DoJ) said. The allegations stemmed from the filing of a whistleblower suit by former Kos employees, and the whistleblowers will receive $6.4 million from the federal share of the settlement under whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act.