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The government awards contracts to companies with histories of misconduct such as contract fraud and environmental, ethics, and labor violations. In the absence of a centralized federal database listing instances of misconduct, the Project On Government Oversight (POGO) is providing such data. We believe that it will lead to improved contracting decisions and public access to information about how the government spends hundreds of billions of taxpayer money each year on goods and services. Report an instance of misconduct »

GlaxoSmithKline

Paxil New York Litigation

Date: 08/26/2004 (Date of Consent Order)

Misconduct Type: Health

Enforcement Agency: State/Local

Contracting Party: None

Court Type: Civil

Amount: $2,500,000

Disposition: Settlement

Synopsis: The New York State Attorney General sued GlaxoSmithKline in June 2004, alleging the company withheld negative information about its anti-depression drug Paxil. The suit alleged GSK suppressed the results of studies which failed to prove Paxil's effectiveness and which suggested a possible increased risk of suicidal thoughts and acts in certain individuals. GSK was further alleged to have failed to disclose this information in medical information letters it sent to physicians. The following August, a settlement was reached in which GSK agreed to pay $2.5 million in disgorgement and costs to the State of New York and to publicly disclose information on all clinical studies -- whether positive or negative -- of the safety and efficacy of its drugs.