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State Medicaid Program To Benefit From Settlement With Drug Company

dailymed.nlm.nih.gov

The Ohio Attorney General's office says the state will get a portion of a large settlement with a major drug company. Jim Letizia reports.

The AG's office says drug maker Pfizer will pay the state 25 million dollars to settle allegations a subsidary failed to give Medicaid the same discounts it provided private buyers of a heartburn treatment. The deal centers on Wyeth's practices related to rebates on Protonix sales between 2001 and 2006.  Federal prosecutors say Wyeth gave thousands of hospitals discounts on two versions of Protonix, but failed to report those prices to the government as required by law, which allows Medicaid to receive the same discounts. Pfizer agreed to a nearly 785 million dollar settlement with several states. The AG's office says Ohio's share will go to the state's Medicaid program.

Jim has been with WCBE since 1996. Before that he worked as a reporter at another Columbus radio station, and for three newspapers in Southwest Florida.
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