Drug firms settle Vytorin complaints
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NEW YORK - Merck & Co. and Schering-Plough Corp. have agreed to pay $5.4 million to 35 states to settle allegations that they delayed releasing negative findings from a study of their cholesterol fighter Vytorin, the drug makers said yesterday.
The 35 states, including Massachusetts, and the District of Columbia had alleged that the drug makers, which sell Vytorin and a related medicine called Zetia in a joint venture, delayed public notice for 20 months about unfavorable data from their so-called Enhance study.
“As part of the resolution of the multistate investigation, the companies agreed to reimburse the investigative costs of the 35 states and the District of Columbia, which totaled $5.4 million,’’ the drug makers said.
The study found that Vytorin, a pill that combines Zetia with Merck’s older Zocor cholesterol fighter, was no more effective in reducing plaque in the carotid arteries than an inexpensive generic form of Zocor.
