Buyers, Health Plans Achieve Class Status in Diabetes Drug Suit

A federal judge granted class action status to a group of direct buyers of the diabetes drug Actos, along with end-payor health plans, in long-standing litigation accusing Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. of an illegal scheme to delay generic competition.

Judge Ronnie Abrams of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York in a Monday opinion adopted a magistrate judge’s report and recommendation to grant class certification to both groups of plaintiffs, allowing the case to move forward.

Abrams said Takeda’s objections to the certifications were “meritless” and that she found no clear errors in the Aug. 9 report ...