Fougera Pharmaceuticals, Others Hit with Antitrust Class Action

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The Philadelphia Federation of Teachers Health and Welfare Fund has filed a proposed class action against several defendants claiming they unlawfully conspired to fix and/or stabilize the prices of generic Econazole Nitrate antifungal topical creams. Of the allegedly odd price behavior of the products, which the case says is part of a worrying trend of ballooning generic drug prices, the lawsuit lays out its allegations of the defendant’s alleged role in the scheme:

“These price increases do not stem from competitive behavior caused by, for instance, supply shortages or changed product demand. Rather, [the defendants] have engaged in a broad and wide-ranging conspiracy to fix, raise, maintain and stabilize generic drugs’ prices, and to allocate customers and markets for them. [The defendants] effectuated their conspiracy by direct business-to-business contacts among generic drug manufacturers, secret communications and meetings, and/or joint participation taken under the guise of trade associations like the Generic Pharmaceutical Association (GPhA). For example, representatives from [the defendants] attended GPhA’s annual meeting in Orlando, Florida during February 2014 and GPhA meetings in Bethesda, Maryland in May and June 2014. Shortly after these meetings, the price for generic Econazole Nitrate increased by extraordinary amounts.”

The complaint names as defendants Fougera Pharmaceuticals Inc., Perrigo Co. PLC, Perrigo Company, Perrigo New York, Taro Pharmaceuticals USA Inc., and Teligent, Inc.