Daiichi Sankyo to pay $39M to settle DOJ claims it paid kickbacks to docs

Japanese drugmaker Daiichi Sankyo will pay $39 million to state and federal health programs, and a whistleblower, to settle claims it paid doctors kickbacks to prescribe some of its drugs, Reuters reports. The settlement, the Justice Department said, stemmed from a whistleblower lawsuit filed by former Daiichi sales representative Kathy Fragoules. She will get $6.1 million of the settlement. The drugmaker was accused of enticing doctors with speaking fees and lavish dinners, sometimes to speak only to their own staffs, the government contended. Story