Sun Pharma gets US subpoena over pricing of generic drugs

Department of Justice seeks information on pricing and marketing of generic drugs it sells in the US

The US Department of Justice (DoJ) has subpoenaed India's largest drugmaker Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, seeking information about the pricing and marketing of the generic drugs it sells in the United States, the company said on Saturday.

The DoJ's antitrust division has also asked Sun Pharma's US unit for documents related to employee and corporate records and communications with competitors.

The subpoena comes amid a wider probe by US regulators into steep increases in the prices of generic medicines in recent years.

The US Department of Health and Human Services started an investigation last year into generic drug prices after prodding from US Senator Bernie Sanders and Democratic Representative Elijah Cummings.

They specifically cited doxycycline hyclate 100 milligram, an antibiotic for which the price doubled in the year through June 2014.

The DoJ's antitrust division sent subpoenas last year to two generic drugmakers — Endo International Plc and Mylan — seeking information on their doxycycline products.

Sun Pharma, the world's fifth-largest maker of generic medicines, is one of several companies selling doxycycline products in the United States. In a statement issued late on Saturday, it did not disclose the products over which the DoJ had sought information.

Other generic drugmakers including India's Dr Reddy's Laboratories Ltd and US firm Allergan also received subpoenas from regulators seeking similar information last year, but they did not disclose the names of the products involved.