BERLIN (Dispatches) - Pfizer has agreed to pay $345 million to resolve claims by consumers who alleged they overpaid for the device that treats allergic reactions. The lawsuit had accused the maker of the emergency drug, Pfizer, and the company that markets it, Mylan, of engaging in anticompetitive behavior that allowed them to maintain a monopoly in the market for those handheld devices.
The proposed class action settlement comes five years after Mylan sparked public outrage over the high cost of medicines. The drug maker jacked up the price of a pair of EpiPens to $600 in 2016 from $100 in 2008.
Pfizer did not admit wrongdoing. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Pfizer’s deal, which requires a judge’s approval, is less than the $465 million Mylan agreed to pay in 2017 to resolve Justice Department claims it overcharged the government for the EpiPen.