Gilead Loses Bid to Keep BCBS Out of HIV Drug Antitrust Case

The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association can lead part of a consolidated antitrust case over Gilead Sciences Inc.'s blockbuster HIV prevention drugs, a federal judge in San Francisco ruled, rejecting the idea that the insurance giant is just a middleman with no skin in the game.

Judge Edward M. Chen advanced the proposed class action on behalf of “end payers,” like insurers, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, where Gilead and several other companies face claims they conspired to delay generic versions of Truvada and similar drugs.

Although BCBSA sued in its capacity as an ...