BioTek: Indian-origin CEO of pharmaceutical company will settle the allegations against him, will have to pay two crore dollars
A pharmaceutical company in the US and its Indian-origin Chief Executive Officer (CEO) have agreed to collectively pay $20 million to resolve allegations against them. According to the Justice Department, he is accused of paying bribes to patients and physicians to protect his own income.
Jacqueline C. Romero, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, said, “The biotech allegedly provided improper inducements to physicians and accepted bribes for patient referrals by waiving copayments.”
Romero said in a statement, “The biotech led and implemented by Chaitanya Gadde, Dr. David Taibbi, and others provides a steady revenue stream for the biotech – regardless of whether patients are facing financial hardship.” This weakened the patient care system for the citizens of the district.”
When a Medicare beneficiary receives a Medicare-covered prescription drug, the beneficiary may be required to make a partial payment, which may be in the form of a co-payment, co-insurance, or deductible.
The US government alleged that Biotech, a specialty pharmacy that offered prescription medications and infusion services, routinely underpaid Medicare and TRICARE patients’ co-payments from August 2015 to May 2020, a statement from the US Justice Department said. formally waived so as to motivate those patients to purchase their medicines and services.
A release from the Justice Department said many specialty drugs offered by biotechs were expensive, causing patients to pay more. It alleges that Biotech provided remuneration to physicians in the form of gifts, dinners and free administrative and clinical support services so that they would refer patients to Biotech.
Dr. Taibbi, who practiced neurology in Pennsylvania, claimed that he knowingly sought and accepted remuneration in exchange for referring several patients to Biotech. Tabby has separately paid $480,000 to settle the charges against him.
