Abbott Labratories to Pay $1 Billion Over Misbranding Drug

Abbott Laboratories has pleaded guilty and agreed to pay $1.6 billion to resolve its criminal and civil liability arising from the company's unlawful promotion of the prescription drug Depakote, the U.S. Justice Department said Monday.

Acting Associate Attorney General Tony West said it was case of Abbott putting "profits ahead of patients."

The total includes a criminal fine of $700 million and civil settlements with the states and federal government totaling $800 million. Abbott pleaded guilty to a criminal misdemeanor for misbranding Depakote.

Separate from the DOJ settlement, Abbott agreed to pay 45 states a total of $100 million to resolve liability under the state consumer-protection laws.

That makes this the second-largest fraud settlement involving a drug company, behind only the $2.3 billion Pfizer settlement in 2010. It is the third-largest fraud settlement against the government in any field.

Abbott pleaded guilty to misbranding Depakote by promoting the drug to control agitation and aggression in patients with elderly dementia and to treat schizophrenia when neither use was approved by the Food and Drug Administration, the Justice Department said.

Abbott will be subject to court-supervised probation and reporting obligations for Abbott's CEO and board of directors.

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Abbot Labratories to Pay $1 Billion Over Misbranding Drug