CHUCK BARTELS, Associated Press
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – A judge will decide how much Johnson & Johnson and a subsidiary must pay the state of Arkansas after a jury found the company downplayed and hid risks associated with an antipsychotic drug.
Jurors returned a quick verdict Tuesday in favor of the state. Arkansas attorneys argued that Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc. lied about the potentially life-threatening side effects of Risperdal.
A hearing on how much Johnson & Johnson and its subsidiary must pay is scheduled for Wednesday morning.
Arkansas’ Medicaid-fraud law sets a minimum penalty of $5,000 per violation – which would total at least $1.2 billion for the 250,000 prescriptions under Medicaid over 3½ years.