The state will receive about $700 million as part of a settlement with two pharmaceutical giants in a long-running lawsuit over a blood thinner.
Last summer, a judge awarded the state nearly $1 billion saying that the drug Plavix was not effective for many Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, because they lack an enzyme to activate the drug. But the pharmaceutical companies Sanofi and Bristol Myers Squibb appealed the decision.
Rather than continuing to fight the lawsuit, the parties decided to settle.
Governor Josh Green says the settlement is coming at a time when the state is facing potentially significant federal funding cuts.
“ I was allowed to share some of the details with them,” he said. “And, that meant that the speaker, the senate president, the finance chair and the ways and means chair, received a call from me so that they knew that these dollars were coming. So that they could begin the process as we already had planned, to potentially have a special session later in the year in case we have a crater in our Medicaid budget, or we have needs with EBT food stamps or if we need to pay for school lunches for our children. All of these things I feel are very connected to our health and this settlement will help us cover.”
The funds are expected to come to the state in June.
The full settlement agreement can be viewed here.
