NH reps want to get tough with drug manufacturers
CONCORD, N.H.—When 17 state representatives wrote New Hampshire Attorney General Kelly Ayotte in May, asking her to seek compensation from pharmaceutical companies that have improperly marketed or not fully disclosed side effects of antipsychotic drugs, they didn't know that one of the companies was under investigation.
Last week, the state's Medicaid fraud unit announced a $1.2 million settlement with
The $1.2 million is New Hampshire's share of a $515 million national civil settlement, which involved 43 states and the federal government.
The settlement also includes allegations that Bristol-Myers Squibb overpriced various drugs and made illegal payments to doctors to promote the sale of some drugs.
The lead petitioner, Rep. Al Baldasaro, R-Londonderry, said last week that he is happy with Ayotte's progress, but he wants continued action.
Each year, New Hampshire and the federal government split the cost of Medicaid, which helps pay for health care for the needy, aged and disabled, as well as low-income families with children.
What first caught Baldasaro's attention was a huge increase in state spending on newer antipsychotic drugs for children almost $4 million last year, up from less than $300,000 in 2000.
"What got me going is how much money we are spending on Medicaid dollars to drug our kids, and on prescriptions that are designed for adults and not tested for use by children," he said.
When Baldasaro and other officials saw other states taking drug manufacturers to court to recover money wrongfully collected from them, the legislators wanted New Hampshire to follow suit. Their petition asked Ayotte to sue Bristol-Myers Squibb, manufacturer of Abilify, and Eli Lilly, manufacturer of Zyprexa. Both drugs are prescribed for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
Lilly has paid at least $1.2 billion in settlements to Zyprexa users nationwide, over claims they developed diabetes or other diseases from using the drug.
Baldasaro also wants the attorney general to consider joining the U.S. Department of Justice to criminally prosecute drug company executives, where appropriate, again as a deterrent to protect children and others from being placed on powerful medications.
In response to the petition, Baldasaro said he got a letter from Ayotte last month saying that New Hampshire has taken on cases against eight drug companies.
"I can assure you that we continue to be very active in investigating improper conduct and in seeking to recover any funds wrongfully collected from the state," Ayotte wrote.
Ultimately, Baldasaro and the other petitioners want a deterrent against improper marketing of powerful drugs.
Petition signers Rep. Gene Charron, R-Chester, and Rep. Marilinda Garcia, R-Salem, said too much is at stake people's lives, children's lives.
"We want to make sure that with the increased use of medications by school-age children, that the kids are safe," Garcia said.
------
Information from: Eagle 
