Idaho will get a piece of the $3 billion pie from a nationwide settlement that resolves claims that British drug maker GlaxoSmithKline committed health care fraud.
The Gem State will get more than $1.6 million because of harm the company's actions allegedly inflicted on Idaho's Medicaid program, Attorney General Lawrence Wasden said Tuesday.
A federal complaint alleged that GlaxoSmithKline engaged in illegal schemes to market drugs, including the psychiatric drugs Wellbutrin and Paxil, for uses that weren't approved by the Food and Drug Administration. State and federal governments also said the company gave medical professionals kickbacks and underpaid rebates owed to government programs for drugs paid for by Medicaid and other federally funded health programs. GlaxoSmithKline agreed to plead guilty to federal criminal charges related to drug labeling and FDA reporting.
Idaho's share of the settlement will be divided between Idaho Medicaid and the state's general fund. About $732,750 will go to Medicaid, and $877,679 will go to the general fund to be appropriated by the Legislature.
