The state of Florida on Wednesday filed a motion to join a whistle-blower fraud lawsuit against Tennessee-based pharmacy benefit manger Caremark Rx that alleges the company improperly resold prescription drugs returned to its mail-order pharmacies, the Miami Herald reports (Dorschner, Miami Herald, 6/18). In January 2003, two pharmacists -- married couple Michael and Peppi Fowler -- who worked for Caremark Rx filed a lawsuit in 2nd Circuit Court in Leon County, Fla., accusing the company of illegally reselling prescription medicines returned by patients. While legal in six states, reselling returned prescription medicines is illegal in all other states, including Florida. The pharmacists say that in addition to reselling returned drugs, Caremark also defrauded Florida by charging the state twice for the same medications and lying about how quickly it sent medications to patients. Caremark officials say that the allegations are without merit and that all of the company's policies are legal (Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 4/5).

Change of Course

In July 2003, the state of Florida declined to intervene in the suit against Caremark, the nation's second-largest PBM for health plans and large employers (Russell, Tennessean, 6/18). However, it reversed its position on Wednesday when representatives for Florida Attorney General Charlie Crist (R) filed the motion to intervene. The motion said the state was intervening for unspecified reasons, as well as "a strong possibility one or more of the whistle-blowers and Crists's office could soon be adversaries in an administrative proceeding involving professional regulation" (Miami Herald, 6/18). The motion said that state lawyers had "recently received information" about the Fowlers' "employment relationship" with Caremark that persuaded it to join the case.

Reaction

Caremark said in a court filing on Thursday that it welcomed Florida's intervention "for purposes of resolving as quickly and efficiently as possible whatever business/partnership issues exist between Caremark and the state of Florida" (Tennessean, 6/18). Michael Leonard, the Fowlers' attorney, said that the motion was not strongly worded and that state attorneys wrote it after Caremark attorneys reviewed an earlier draft, according to the Herald. Crist spokesperson JoAnn Carrin said that advance copies of the motion were shown to both Caremark and the Fowlers and that the motion was not subsequently revised based on reactions from either party