Sanofi Pasteur to pay $19.9 million for overcharging the US VA

Sanofi-Pasteur, the vaccines business of French pharma major Sanofi (Euronext: SAN), has agreed to pay $19,868,194 to resolve claims that it incorrectly calculated drug prices and thereby overcharged the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for drugs under two contracts between 2002 and 2011, the Department of Justice revealed yesterday.

“It is important that pharmaceutical companies provide complete, accurate, and current information to the VA about the pricing of their drugs,” said acting Assistant Attorney General Chad Readler of the Justice Department’s Civil Division.

Under the Veterans Health Care Act, 38 US C 8126, drug manufactures may not charge the VA more than a maximum amount, known as the Federal Ceiling Price (FCP), for covered drugs. Sanofi Pasteur disclosed to the VA that it had incorrectly calculated the FCP for certain drugs from 2007 to 2011 and overcharged the VA. The Office of Inspector General for the VA investigated the matter, and it determined that the error resulted in overcharges going back to 2002.