OK, so this is about drugs being used for dementia, not Parkinson's - although a serious percentage of PWP also end up with dementia. But what bothers me here, is the government making $1.5 Billion by convicting the drug company... imagine how much medical research could be done with 1.5 billion dollars. And there was another, larger fine before this, and there are many smaller fines. Pharma adds the cost of the fines to the drugs, and make huge profits; the government rakes in billions.... all from turning our disease into a marketable commodity... and we can't get research done, we can't get home visits from PD nurses and so on for ever. These are crimes committed against sick people. Why does the government get to confiscate the money?

Abbott Laboratories guilty, fined $1.5 billion

OIG Posts News about Large Off-Label Drug Promotion

Good afternoon to all from Washington, DC. This is a special news Email related to the Department of Justice announcement regarding Abbott Laboratories off label promotion of Depakote.
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Abbott Labs to pay $1.5 Billion to Resolve Criminal & Civil Investigations of Off-label Promotion of Depakote http://go.usa.gov/V5

Global Health Care Company Abbott Laboratories Inc. has pleaded guilty and agreed to pay $1.5 billion to resolve its criminal and civil liability arising from the company’s unlawful promotion of the prescription drug Depakote for uses not approved as safe and effective by the Food and Drug Administration, the Justice Department announced today.
The resolution – the second largest payment by a drug company – includes a criminal fine and forfeiture totaling $700 million and civil settlements with the federal government and the states totaling $800 million. Abbott also will be subject to court-supervised probation and reporting obligations for Abbott’s CEO and Board of Directors.
“As a result of OIG’s joint investigation with our federal and state partners, Abbott Laboratories will enter one of the pharmaceutical industry’s largest settlements and pay $1.5 billion for unlawfully promoting its drug Depakote, including to nursing home patients with dementia,” said HHS Inspector General Daniel R. Levinson. “Our integrity agreement will hold Abbott accountable for preventing future violations of federal health care laws and FDA requirements, which will protect federal programs, taxpayers and our most vulnerable patients.”
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(That’s the entire press release.