Boxes of tablets produced by Teva Pharmaceutical Industries.Chris Ratcliffe | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesDrugmaker Teva Pharmaceuticals agreed to pay $225 million in criminal fines to resolve charges related to price fixing three medications, including a generic cholesterol drug that it has agreed to divest, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday.Glenmark Pharmaceuticals will pay $30 million to resolve charges alleging that it conspired with Teva to fix prices for that cholesterol drug, called pravastatin. Glenmark will also divest its version of that drug.Teva’s fine is the largest to date for a domestic antitrust case. Both settlements are the latest resolution in a string of cases related to price fixing, which refers to competitors banding together to artificially set the price of a product. Since 2020, the DOJ’s antitrust division has charged five other pharmaceutical companies for participating in similar schemes affecting several generic drugs. Monday’s agreement means seven companies have resolved their criminal charges and collectively agreed to pay more than $681 million in criminal penalties. “Today, the Antitrust Division and our law enforcement partners hold two more pharmaceutical companies accountable for raising prices of essential medicines and depriving Americans of affordable access to prescription drugs,” Jonathan Kanter, assistant attorney general of the DOJ’s antitrust division, said in a release. The deals are deferred prosecution agreements, which means the two companies will not face trial or criminal punishment in the case if they abide by the terms of the agreements. If Teva and Glenmark are convicted, they will likely face mandatory debarment from federal health-care programs, according to the DOJ. Teva has also agreed to donate $50 million worth of two generic drugs affected by price fixing to humanitarian organizations that provide medications to Americans in need. The company said during an earning …
