What We're Reading: ACA Insurers File; Missouri Sues Opioid Manufacturers; Mylan's EpiPen Deals

Health Insurers File 2018 ACA Plans

On Wednesday, health insurers made their final decisions about whether or not they would continue participating in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) insurance exchanges. According to The New York Times, one of the big last-minute changes was Anthem’s decision to pull out of 2 more states: Wisconsin and Indiana. However, Oscar Health in New York has decided to reenter the New Jersey marketplace, as well as expand its footprint to Ohio and Tennessee. Still, there will be 44 counties in 3 states—Washington, Missouri, and Ohio—that will have no insurer offering an ACA marketplace plan in 2018.

Missouri Files Lawsuit Against Opioid Manufacturers

Missouri has joined 2 other states in filing a lawsuit against drug manufacturers for how they marketed opioids. The lawsuit alleges that Purdue Pharma LP, Johnson & Johnson, and units of Endo International Plc misrepresented the risks of opioids, reported Reuters. The lawsuit claims the companies knew opioids were addictive, but deliberately worked to convince doctors and consumers otherwise. Ohio and Mississippi have also filed lawsuits against the 3 companies, as well as Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd and Allergan Plc.

Mylan’s Deal for EpiPen’s Preferred Status

An exclusive article by STAT reported that Mylan had offered EpiPen rebates to 6 state Medicaid programs in exchange for preferred status. In order to get the rebates, the states had to make the EpiPen easily available while competitor products required a special request to be covered. While the arrangement is legal, these sorts of deals are often targets of antitrust litigation, STAT reported. In April, Sanofi filed a lawsuit alleging exclusive contracts signed by Mylan that cemented the company’s domination of the market violated antitrust laws.