A Novartis ($NVS) whistleblower lawsuit has "exploded," the drugmaker says. That's because the U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan has asked for documents about a whopping 80,000 doctor-education events that prosecutors call "shams"--and potentially violations of antikickback laws. In court filings, the whistleblowers--and now the U.S. government--claim that dinners at expensive restaurants and other venues were billed as educational events, but doctors and drug reps barely discussed the company's medications there. Novartis needs to hand over those documents to show whether those gatherings actually qualify as educational, the government says. More from FiercePharma
Editor's note: An earlier version of the headline was incorrect.