Abbott Sued Again, This Time by Rx Chains

My eye is always attracted to stories about Abbott Labs and its anti-AIDS drug Norvir, whose development I documented in my book. The company's development program for AIDS drugs began life with a government grant, and to this day, the government retains "certain rights," never exercised, to the Norvir patent.

Yesterday, the Wall Street Journal reports, four drug store chains and a wholesaler sued Abbott for arbitrarily inflating the price of Norvir fourfold as part of its strategy to monopolize the protease inhibitor market (protease inhibitors are one of the three drugs used in many antiretroviral therapy combinations). AIDS activists and the Service Employees International Union had previously sued the company on the same grounds.

If we had a government (and a Justice Department) that cared about consumer protection, it would join in these suits by invoking the government's right to ensure that the drug is made available on reasonable terms.