New Jersey federal judge Freda Wolfson rejected Mylan‘s (NSDQ:MYL) request to move an antitrust lawsuit brought against the EpiPen maker to Kansas.
Mylan previously claimed that moving the case to Kansas would consolidate it with other class actions from EpiPen buyers – all of which are alleging violations of antitrust laws. Wolfson blocked the request without comment.
The lawsuit, brought by competitor Sanofi (NYSE:SNY), alleged that Mylan offered rebates to insurers if they refused to cover Sanofi’s competing epinephrine device.
Sanofi’s case, which was filed in a New Jersey federal court in April, argued that Mylan’s conduct has cost Sanofi hundreds of millions of dollars in sales for its rival allergy treatment, Auvi-Q.
Canonsburg, Penn.-based Mylan has found itself at the center of the pharmaceutical industry’s pricing problem over the past year. In August last year, reports showed that the company has hiked the price of its device more than 500% since it acquired the EpiPen from Merck (NYSE:MRK) in 2007.
Since then, CEO Heather Bresch has endured questioning by lawmakers and the company has been probed by the Federal Trade Commission.
Bresch previously defended EpiPen’s pricetag at a hearing before the Senate, saying that the company has improved the device over the years.
