BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — The Attorney General of Louisiana has joined a federal lawsuit that alleges drug manufacturers conspired to inflate pricing, reduce competition and restrain the trade of generic drugs.

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Attorney General Jeff Landry issued a statement that said prices were inflated for generic drugs including medication for diabetes, ADHD and cancer. The Advocate reports Landry's office says the conspiracy led to price hikes of up to 1000% for some drugs.

The lawsuit is led by Connecticut AG William Tong and is backed by Attorney Generals from more than 40 other states.

It names Israeli company Teva Pharmaceuticals and 19 of the United States' largest generic drug manufacturers, as well as 15 senior executives responsible for firm operations including pricing and marketing. It seeks to restore market competition. Teva has denied the allegations.

US Senator Bill Cassidy has been working on bills to change how pharmaceutical companies price drugs. He says his package of three bills focus on reducing drug prices by getting generics to market faster.

No matter where I go in Louisiana people are always mentioning the high cost of prescription drugs. To lower the cost of drugs we need to increase competition. Getting generics to market faster increases access and saves money for patients and taxpayers.

The Cassidy REMEDY Act removes some of the legal barriers that delay generics getting to the market.

 

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