State agrees to drug
manufacturing settlement
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June 26, 2011 |
(Boise) – The State of Idaho will receive
$602,825 from a legal settlement with
GlaxoSmithKline, LLC (GSK) and SB Pharmco Puerto
Rico, Inc. (SB Pharmco), Attorney General
Lawrence Wasden said Thursday. Wasden joined
with the attorneys general of 37 other states in
the settlement.
In a complaint filed with the settlement
agreement June 23, Wasden alleged that GSK and
SB Pharmco engaged in unfair and deceptive
practices when they manufactured and distributed
certain lots of Kytril, Bactroban, Paxil CR and
Avandamet. Those lots were adulterated because
of substandard manufacturing processes used to
produce them at the companies’ plant in Cidra,
Puerto Rico. GSK and SB Pharmco are no longer
manufacturing drugs at their Cidra facility,
which has been closed since 2009.
“People depend on prescription drugs for their
health, and, in many instances, for their very
lives,” Attorney General Wasden said. “It is
imperative that manufacturers maintain
integrity, not only in their products, but also
in their representations of their products.”
Kytril is a drug used to prevent nausea and
vomiting caused by cancer chemotherapy and
radiation therapy. Bactroban is an antibiotic
ointment used to treat skin infections. Paxil CR
is the controlled-release formulation of the
popular antidepressant drug, Paxil. Avandamet is
used to treat Type II diabetes.
Consumers should note that there is no current
cause for concern regarding the drugs covered by
this agreement, because all adulterated batches
have been recalled for many years and/or the
products’ expiration date is past. If consumers
do have concerns, they should contact their
health care provider.
The settlement enjoins GSK and SB Pharmco from
making false, misleading or deceptive claims
regarding the manufacturing of all drugs
formerly manufactured at the Cidra facility,
regardless of where those drugs are now
produced.
The settlement has been submitted for approval
by the Fourth District Court in Ada County.
Deputy Attorney General Jane Hochberg handled
the case for Attorney General Wasden’s Consumer
Protection Division. |
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