OptumRx Wins Exit From Antitrust, RICO Case Over Insulin Prices

OptumRx Inc. escaped antitrust and racketeering litigation blaming skyrocketing insulin prices on top drug companies and pharmacy benefit managers, when a Texas federal judge ruled Wednesday that Harris County lacks standing to bring antitrust-style claims over its indirect dealings with Optum.

Judge Gray H. Miller, writing for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, said the county’s claims were doomed by a rule making “indirect purchasers” ineligible for antitrust damages and, generally, those sought under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act.

Miller rejected the county’s theory invoking the “co-conspirator exception,” saying the exception is recognized by ...