The California Insurance Commission will intervene in a whistleblower lawsuit against Bristol Myers-Squibb. It will be the largest health insurance fraud case ever undertaken by a California state agency.

The suit alleges that Bristol Myers-Squibb instructed sales representatives to bribe doctors with meals, sports tickets, paid trips, and other gifts to convince them to prescribe the company’s drugs. The state believes that, as a result, California private health insurance companies have spent more than $3.5 billion on drugs promoted by Bristol Myers-Squibb’s kickback scheme.

Michael Wilson and Lucius and Eve Allen, the whistleblowers behind the case, are all former Bristol Myers-Squibb employees.

Read the entire article, “NEWS: 2011 Press Release”