February 7, 2008 — Merck & Co. Inc. to pay $10.5 million Merck & Co. Inc. has agreed to pay the Commonwealth of Massachusetts $10,502,943 as part of a $649 million global settlement of claims which had been filed by private relators. The allegations of the case were that Merck, the manufacturer of the drugs Zocor, Vioxx and Pepcid, failed to pay rebates due to state Medicaid programs and under the Federal Medicaid Drug Rebate statute. The settlement involved the Attorneys General of 49 states, the District of Columbia and the Federal Government. The relators who filed the action, are likely to receive between 15% to 25% of the Federal Government’s share of the $649 million settlement. In addition, the relators are also likely to receive between 15% and 25% of shares received by twenty one of the states involved in the settlement, and the District of Columbia, all of which have enacted their own False Claims Acts, similar to the Massachusetts False Claims Act. See Massachusetts A.G. Press Release 2/7/08 |