Abbott Labs accused of "inflating prices" in USA

The US Department of Justice has accused US drugmaker Abbott Laboratories of inflating the prices of some drugs in an allegedly fraudulent billing scheme which cost US taxpayers more than $175.0 million over a 10-year period. Abbott strenuously denies any wrongdoing, with Melissa Brotz, a company spokesperson, insisting: "we have a strong defense and we intend to vigorously defend against these claims."

Vancomycin "listed at 18 times actual price"

Among the DoJ claims, Abbott reportedly raised the list price of vancomycin, an intravenous antibiotic, by as much as 18 times the amount it charged hospitals and clinics, because Medicare and Medicaid programs would reimburse on the basis of the manufacturer's price. In return, the health care providers gave Abbott more orders. The pricing scheme was in place during 1991 to 2001, at which point the spread between reported and actual sales prices narrowed, according to prosecutors. The drug's share of the market is reported to have fallen from 70% to 20% in 2004.