McKesson Corporation Settles Federal Whistleblower Claim for $190 Million

McKesson Corporation (“McKesson”), a large drug wholesaler, has agreed to settle the federal-portion only of a whistleblower lawsuit for $190 million.

The whistleblower, David Morgan, a licensed Pennsylvania pharmacist, filed a claim under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act. The whistleblower alleged that McKesson fraudulently reported inflated pricing information for a large number of brand-name, self-administered drugs to First DataBank (“FDB”), during the period from 2001 to 2009.

FDB, a publisher of drug prices used by most state Medicaid programs to set pharmaceutical payment rates, used the pricing information to determine the Average Wholesale Prices (“AWP”) for those drugs. AWP is the benchmark used by Medicaid to determine the payment rates for pharmaceuticals.

The government alleged that McKesson’s inflated pricing information caused FDB to publish inflated AWPs. According to the Complaint, the falsely inflated AWPs caused Medicaid to overpay for those drugs by millions of dollars.

The $190 million settlement resolves the claims based on the federal share of the Medicaid overpayments allegedly caused by McKesson’s conduct. State governments are free to pursue claims based on the states’ shares of the Medicaid overpayments.

If you have any firsthand knowledge, information, or evidence related to any federal, state, county or city government fraud, you should speak with an experienced qui tam lawyer who can help you understand your legal rights and help you obtain the compensation you deserve.

If you have a claim, contact the Florida whistleblower attorneys at Rabin Kammerer Johnson for a free and confidential consultation by calling toll free at 877.915.4040.