In a recent lawsuit, the State of Ohio has accused certain pharmaceutical benefit managers, or “PBMs,” of violating state antitrust laws. According to the complaint, the PBMs have.
The companies are accused of using an overseas company that illegally drove up drug prices for life-saving drugs such as insulin and passed the costs onto consumers.
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost filed a lawsuit in an Ohio court on March 28, 2023, that is the first of its kind. The suit accuses Express Scripts Inc. and Prime Therapeutics.
The complaint alleges multiple violations of the Valentine Act, Ohio’s antitrust law, which prohibits price fixing, controlled sales and other agreements that restrain trade and hurt competition. David Yost, the attorney general decried the practices of PBMs saying that they hurt everyday Ohioans dependent on life-saving drugs like insulin.
Ohio’s antitrust lawsuit against Express Scripts Inc., Humana Pharmacy Solutions and other companies opens a potentially effective legal front against the embattled pharmacy benefit manager industry.