Ala. to get $6 million in Glaxo settlement

Associated Press

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama stands to receive nearly $6 million in a national settlement with pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline Plc., which has agreed to pay $3 billion overall to settle federal and state complaints related to marketing and pricing of its drugs.

Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange announced Monday that the state would get $5,909,500 in recoveries from the company. The money will go to the state Medicaid Agency and the attorney general's office.

GlaxoSmithKline has agreed to pay $2 billion in damages and civil penalties and a $1 billion criminal fine, settling charges it marketed certain drugs for uses not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Charges include marketing the depression drug Paxil for off-label use by children.

The company says it has changed compliance procedures and is pleading guilty to misdemeanor federal charges, while admitting no wrongdoing in the broader civil settlement.