Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP, Hilliard & Shadowen LLP, and Durie Tangri LLP Announce a Partial Settlement in a Class Action Lawsuit Involving Antiretroviral Drugs

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 30, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- 

If you purchased Atripla, Biktarvy, Complera, Descovy, Evotaz, Genvoya, Odefsey, Prezcobix, Stribild, Symtuza, Truvada, or Viread, the partial settlement of a class action lawsuit may affect your rights.
Payments to eligible consumers of Atripla and Evotaz will vary based on the number of claims, but are expected to average $70.50 to $282.

A partial settlement has been reached in a class action lawsuit involving the antiretroviral drugs Atripla, Biktarvy, Complera, Descovy, Evotaz, Genvoya, Odefsey, Prezcobix, Stribild, Symtuza, Truvada, and Viread (the "Settlement"). The lawsuit claims that Gilead Sciences, Inc., Gilead Holdings, LLC, Gilead Sciences, LLC, and Gilead Sciences Ireland UC ("Gilead"), Bristol-Myers Squibb Company and E. R. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C. ("BMS"), and Johnson & Johnson, Janssen Products LP, and Janssen R&D Ireland ("Janssen") (collectively, "Defendants") engaged in a variety of allegedly anticompetitive conduct that caused certain consumers and third-party payors (the "End-Payor Class," discussed below) to pay too much for HIV medicines, specifically: Atripla, Biktarvy, Complera, Descovy, Evotaz, Genvoya, Odefsey, Prezcobix, Stribild, Symtuza, Truvada, and Viread. Defendants deny any wrongdoing. No one is claiming that any of these drugs is unsafe or ineffective.

WHAT DOES THE SETTLEMENT PROVIDE?

To settle all claims against it in the lawsuit, BMS has agreed not to enforce a certain contractual provision in its agreement with Gilead, involving the drug Evotaz, that the Plaintiffs allege is anticompetitive. BMS also agrees to deposit $10,000,000 into a Settlement Fund. The claims against Gilead and Janssen are unaffected by Plaintiffs' settlement with BMS, and the litigation against Gilead and Janssen will continue.

If the Settlement is approved by the Court and becomes final, Plaintiffs' Counsel will seek reimbursement from the Settlement Fund for $2.5 million in costs and expenses advanced by Counsel on behalf of the Plaintiffs in connection with the litigation. Plaintiffs' Counsel will not seek the payment of any attorneys' fees from BMS or the Settlement Fund. The remainder of the Settlement Fund will be distributed to the End-Payor Class pursuant to a Plan of Allocation for which the Plaintiffs seek the Court's approval. The Settlement Agreement is available at the website, www.HIVdrugsettlement.com, and contains more details.

WHO IS INCLUDED IN THE SETTLEMENT CLASSES?

There are seven Settlement Classes, five of which provide for damages relief and two of which provide for injunctive relief only. The five Settlement Damages Classes are: (i) the Atripla Settlement Damages Class; (ii) the Evotaz Settlement Damages Class; (iii) the Complera Settlement Damages Class; (iv) the Stribild Settlement Damages Class; and (v) the Truvada Settlement Damages Class. The two Settlement Injunctive-Relief Classes are: (vi) the cART Foundation Settlement Injunctive-Relief Class; and (vii) the Prezcobix Settlement Injunctive-Relief Class.

Generally, you are included in one or more of the Settlement Damages Classes for Atripla (brand or generic) or Evotaz if you are a consumer or Third-Party Payor ("TPP") and you purchased, paid, and/or provided reimbursement in (which includes, with respect to TPPs, the state in which you have your principal place of business) any of the Damages States for some or all of the purchase price for one or more of those drugs for consumption by yourself or your family, or, with respect to TPPs, by your members, employees, insureds, participants, citizens, residents, or beneficiaries, other than for resale, during the period May 14, 2015 through October 13, 2021.

The "Damages States" are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.

Generally, the Settlement Damages Classes for Complera, Stribild, and Truvada (brand or generic) have the same criteria as above, except that only TPPs – not consumers – are members of the Complera, Stribild, and Truvada Settlement Damages Classes.

Generally, you are included in the cART Foundation Settlement Injunctive-Relief Class if you are a consumer or TPP who purchased, paid, and/or provided reimbursement anywhere in the United States or its territories for some or all of the purchase price for one or more of the following drugs for consumption by yourself, your family, or your members, employees, insureds, participants, or beneficiaries, other than for resale, during the period May 14, 2015 through October 13, 2021. The drugs are: Atripla, Biktarvy, Complera, Descovy, Evotaz, Genvoya, Odefsey, Prezcobix, Stribild, Symtuza, Truvada, and Viread.

Generally, the Prezcobix Settlement Injunctive-Relief Class has the same criteria as for the cART Foundation Settlement Injunctive-Relief Class, but includes only the consumer and TPP buyers of Prezcobix.

Certain individuals and entities are excluded from some or all of the Classes defined above. The complete descriptions of the Settlement Classes are set forth in the full Notice and in the Settlement Agreement, which are available on the website www.HIVdrugsettlement.com or by contacting the Settlement Administrator.

HOW DO I GET A PAYMENT?

If the Court approves the Settlement, consumer members of the Atripla Damages Class and the Evotaz Damages Class will be eligible to receive payments from the Settlement Fund based upon the amount of their unreimbursed payments, copayments, or co-insurance payments for those drugs. You will need to submit a Claim Form, which you may obtain from the website or by asking the Settlement Administrator (information on the website) to send you a Claim Form. After the hearing scheduled for April 28, 2022, check the Settlement website, www.HIVdrugsettlement.com, to see whether the Court approved the Settlement. If the Settlement is approved, the consumer members of the Atripla Damages Class and the Evotaz Damages Class will share in a Settlement Fund of $2.5 million. The average amount paid for each valid claim for eligible consumers of Atripla or Evotaz will depend on the total number of valid claims that are submitted. For example, if 15,000 valid claims are submitted, the average valid claim, after accounting for the costs of administering the Settlement Fund, will be paid approximately $141.00. If twice that number of valid claims are submitted (i.e., 30,000), then the average valid claim would be paid approximately $70.50. The same principle applies if the number of valid claims is less than 15,000; if, for example, only 7,500 valid claims are submitted, the average valid claim would be paid approximately $282.00.

Payments to eligible TPPs will be deferred until later in the litigation; you will receive further notice as to when those payments will be made.

YOUR RIGHTS AND OPTIONS

Your options depend on whether you are a member of one of the Settlement Damages Classes or a member of one of the Settlement Injunctive-Relief Classes. If you are a member of one of the Settlement Damages Classes, you have the right to exclude yourself from (to opt out of) the proposed Settlement Damages Classes no later than March 15, 2022. You may also comment on or object to the proposed Settlement to the extent you have not opted out. If you are a member of one of the Settlement Injunctive-Relief Classes, you cannot exclude yourself from the Class if the Court approves the Settlement, but you may comment on or object to the proposed Settlement. To comment on or object to any aspect of the proposed Settlement, you must act by March 15, 2022. Details on how to request exclusion, comment, or object can be found at www.HIVdrugsettlement.com.

The Court will hold a hearing at 1:30 p.m. on April 28, 2022, to consider whether the Settlement and all of its terms are fair, reasonable, and adequate.

FOR MORE INFORMATION AND A CLAIM FORM

Visit www.HIVdrugsettlement.com Call 1-877-999-2491

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SOURCE Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP, Hilliard & Shadowen LLP, and Durie Tangri LLP