AGs of Texas, California probe DRL's drug pricing mechanism

Attorney Generals of Texas and California have separately sought information on pricing of some drugs sold by Dr Reddy's Laboratories in the US, according to the latest filing for the drug maker with SEC.
The development comes after two members of the United States Congress wrote to the company requesting information and expressing "concern" over the "escalating prices" of two products -- divalproex sodium ER and pravastatin sodium -- marketed by it in the United States.
On or about November 10, 2014, DRL received a Civil Investigative Demand (CID) from the Office of the Attorney General, State of Texas requesting certain information for the period of time between January 1, 1995 and the date of the CID.

Similarly, on November 3, 2014 the drug maker received a "subpoena duces tecum" to appear before the Office of the Attorney General, California and produce records and documents relating to the pricing of 15 products, the filing said.
"The CID includes a broad range of requests for information, documents and data regarding sales and price reporting in the US marketplace of certain products.
"We subsequently communicated with the Texas AG, at which time they requested a sample of certain transactional data pertaining to one calendar quarter requested in the CID, and agreed to provide such sample transactional data to the Texas AG no later than February 20, 2015," DRL said in the filing.

According to US legal terminology, a subpoena duces tecum (or subpoena for production of evidence) are court summons ordering the recipient to appear before the court and produce documents or other tangible evidence for use at a hearing or trial.

When contacted, a DRL official while confirming the developments, refused to divulge more details.
"We confirm having received the CID. We are working closely with the office of the Attorney General, State of Texas, in responding to their queries so as to expedite a speedy redress to the information they have sought from us.
"At this point, we do not have any further comment as the matter is still work in progress," the DRL official told PTI.