CLARITIN MANUFACTURER TO REIMBURSE STATE $147,039 IN MEDICAID FRAUD SETTLEMENT 

PIERRE, S.D. – Attorney General Larry Long announced today that South Dakota will receive $147,039 in Medicaid restitution and penalties as part of an agreement with Schering Plough, the manufacturer of Claritin. The settlement results from Schering Plough’s failure to fully reimburse the state Medicaid program for rebates on this allergy medication. 

Federal law requires that all pharmaceutical manufacturers give the Medicaid recipients the “best price” available for a specific product including all discounts, rebates, payments and other incentives. In this case it was alleged that Schering-Plough provided health maintenance organizations with certain discounts, concessions and incentives for Claritin that the company did not report to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. As a result, Medicaid did not receive the “best price.” 

As part of the agreement, Schering will be required to report accurate pricing information to the federal and state governments on many of its products. Schering also entered into a Corporate Integrity Agreement (“CIA”) with the United States Department of Health and Human Service's Inspector General, which will require strict scrutiny of Schering's pricing and sales practices for the next five years. 

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