Cal­i­for­nia in­sur­ance com­mis­sion­er files suit against Ab­b­Vie, claims wide­spread kick­back scheme to pro­mote its block­buster Hu­mi­ra

Shares of Ab­b­Vie $AB­BV took a hit on Tues­day af­ter­noon af­ter Cal­i­for­nia In­sur­ance Com­mis­sion­er Dave Jones filed suit against the phar­ma gi­ant, al­leg­ing that the com­pa­ny en­gaged in an elab­o­rate and ex­ten­sive kick­back scheme to per­suade physi­cians to pre­scribe Hu­mi­ra — their big block­buster and the most lu­cra­tive drug on the mar­ket to­day.

The suit, which was heav­i­ly redact­ed, in­clud­ed claims that Ab­b­Vie of­fered doc­tors a range of in­cen­tives — in­clud­ing gifts and trips — along with an ex­ten­sive nurs­ing pro­gram that put com­pa­ny paid “am­bas­sadors” in the homes of pa­tients to help guide their care:

Unlock this article instantly by becoming a free subscriber.

You’ll get access to free articles each month, plus you can customize what newsletters get delivered to your inbox each week, including breaking news.

SIGN UP LOG IN BECOME A PREMIUM SUBSCRIBER