In a recent report, Iowa aggregated the estimated amount of money it had been defrauded of as a result of average wholesale price fraud over the last thirteen years.  That total came to a whopping $1.6 billion.

Several pharmaceutical companies allegedly participated in fraudulent practices that manipulated the average wholesale price (AWP) that was used to determine the amount Medicare and Medicaid would reimburse for such drugs.  Nearly every major pharmaceutical company has been involved in AWP fraud litigation, including Pfizer, Johnson and Johnson, GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis, and more.  Iowa estimated that it lost $222 million from Pfizer alone.

Sandoz, a division of Novartis, settled an AWP case with the state of Texas last week for $66 million.

Read the entire article, “10 Drug Companies That Hurt Iowa the Most in an Alleged Pricing Scam”