
After years of litigation, a Hawaii court judge ordered Bristol Myers Squibb (BMY) and Sanofi (SNY) to pay $834 million for deliberately withholding information about the effectiveness of the Plavix blood thinner in East Asian and Pacific Islander individuals, who constitute roughly half of Hawaii’s population.
In a 2014 lawsuit filed by the state, the drug makers were accused of minimizing and concealing trial data and other information showing Plavix was only as effective — or in some cases — less effective than aspirin in treating those patient groups, and that the blood thinner had a higher chance of causing gastrointestinal bleeding. The state also contended the companies knew or should have known Plavix had no effect or a diminished effect on 30% of patients, which could have been identified through a “simple” genetic test.
What is it?
STAT+ is STAT’s premium subscription service for in-depth biotech, pharma, policy, and life science coverage and analysis. Our award-winning team covers news on Wall Street, policy developments in Washington, early science breakthroughs and clinical trial results, and health care disruption in Silicon Valley and beyond.
What’s included?
- Daily reporting and analysis
- The most comprehensive industry coverage from a powerhouse team of reporters
- Subscriber-only newsletters
- Daily newsletters to brief you on the most important industry news of the day
- STAT+ Conversations
- Weekly opportunities to engage with our reporters and leading industry experts in live video conversations
- Exclusive industry events
- Premium access to subscriber-only networking events around the country
- The best reporters in the industry
- The most trusted and well-connected newsroom in the health care industry
- And much more
- Exclusive interviews with industry leaders, profiles, and premium tools, like our CRISPR Trackr.