IMPORTANT DATES & DEADLINES
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Objections:
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The deadline has passed. Filed
on or before February 28, 2011
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Exclusions:
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The deadline has passed. Received
no later than
February 28, 2011
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Claim Cards:
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The deadline has passed. Postmarked
by
January 31, 2011
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Changes to Section C of Claim Form:
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The deadline has passed. Postmarked
by February 28, 2011
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Fairness Hearing:
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UPDATE: Approved
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There is a Settlement of a class action lawsuit involving Bristol-Myers Squibb (“BMS”)
drugs Blenoxane®, Cytoxan®, Etopophos®, Paraplatin®, Rubex®, Taxol® and Vepesid®.
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This lawsuit is NOT about whether these drugs are safe or effective. This lawsuit
is about the amount that you were charged for the drugs. The class action claims
that customers paid too much for the drugs.
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BMS has agreed to pay $19 million to settle the class action. 28% of this amount,
minus certain fees and expenses, will be available to pay consumer claims including
those consumers who participated in Medicare Part B and who made a co-payment for
BMS Drugs outside of the Medicare Part B program. The remaining 72%. Minus certain
fees and expenses, is eligible for allocation to third-party payors such as insurance
companies.
For more detailed information, please review the Notice
and other court documents on the links at the left.
What Is The Lawsuit About?
The Average Wholesale Price (“AWP”) is used to set reimbursement amounts that are
paid by a) Medicare and its beneficiaries, b) private health insurers, and c) consumers
making percentage co-payments under private health insurance plans. The lawsuit
claims that BMS reported false and inflated AWPs for the drugs covered in this Settlement.
BMS denies any wrongdoing, and the Settlement is not an admission of wrongdoing
or an indication that any law was violated.
The name of the lawsuit is In re: Pharmaceutical Industry Average Wholesale Price
Litigation, Docket No. 01-CV-12257-PBS, MDL No. 1456.
How Do I Know If I Am Included In The Settlement?
You are part of the Settlement if you made, or were obligated to make, a percentage
co-payment under Medicare Part B for one or more of the BMS Drugs from January 1,
1991 through December 31, 2004.
A spouse of a deceased class member who made such a co-payment or a legal representative
of a deceased class member’s estate may file a claim.
A percentage co-payment is a payment that varies according to the price of the drug
(i.e. 20% or 25% of the total cost). If you paid the same amount (i.e. $10, $20)
per prescription, regardless of the cost of the drug, you did not make a percentage
co-payment and are not included in the Settlement.
Excluded from the Settlement are (1) consumers who made flat co-payments, who were
reimbursed fully for their payments, or who have the right to be fully reimbursed,
and (2) BMS and certain related entities as defined in the Settlement Agreement.
Also excluded from the Settlement are all federal, state, and local government entities
in the United States, except any such governmental agencies or programs that made
or incurred an obligation to make a reimbursement for a BMS Drug as part of a health
benefit plan for their employees, but only with respect to such payment.
You are not a member of a Class if you made flat co-payments, if insurance paid all
of your co-payment, or if you were never obligated to make a co-payment at all.
Questions concerning the matters contained herein should be directed to the Settlement
Administrator listed below.
Please email or write the Settlement Administrator at the address below if your
address changes.
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BMS AWP Class 1 Settlement Administrator
c/o Rust Consulting, Inc.
P.O. Box 2364
Faribault, MN 55021
Toll-free Phone: 877-690-7097
Email: info@BMSAWPSettlement.com
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