Alleged Drug Pricing Scheme Spawns Six Lawsuits in Six Weeks

By Jacklyn Wille, Bloomberg BNA

Health plan participants have filed six lawsuits in as many weeks accusing health insurers Cigna Corp., UnitedHealth Group and Humana of secret schemes to overcharge for prescription drugs.

The latest proposed class action, filed yesterday against Cigna Corp. and OptumRX Inc., accuses the insurer and pharmacy benefit manager of adding hidden and unauthorized fees to sales of prescription drugs that had retail prices below an insured patient’s copayment amount. When a copayment exceeds the retail price of a given drug, the defendants “claw back” that excess copayment amount as “pure, undisclosed profits,” according to the ...