OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — The State of Oklahoma will receive about $1.27 million in a settlement against the maker of Suboxone, which is an opioid treatment medication, according to the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office.
The company that makes the opioid addiction treatment drug Suboxone has agreed to pay $102.5 million to 41 states and the District of Columbia to settle claims that the company engaged in anticompetitive practices, it announced Friday.
The agreement with Indivior, based in North Chesterfield, Virginia, averts a trial that was scheduled to start later this year.
States, led by Wisconsin, claimed that the company, previously a subsidiary of Reckitt Benckiser Pharmaceuticals, made modest changes to Suboxone to extend patent protection and keep generic versions of the drug off the market.
Under the terms of the deal, Indivior is to notify the states when it makes product modifications or changes in corporate control.
The company said in a statement that settling the lawsuit will allow it to focus on its mission.
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond joined Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul and 40 other U.S. attorney generals in negotiating a $102.5 million settlement against Indivior.
“I will not sit idly by and allow a company to illegally manipulate the market with the intention of inflating the cost of a critical medication,” Drummond said. “It is imperative for patients to have affordable access to essential medications.”