Photo: Maryna Pleshkun/Shutterstock.com

A pharmaceutical company accused of illegally using benefits to entice physicians to prescribe its dermatology drugs has settled those claims with the federal government for $3.5 million, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania has announced.

According to the settlement agreement, Spanish drugmaker Almirall, formerly known as Aqua Pharmaceuticals, will make the payment to resolve claims that between 2012 and 2017, it used its sales representatives and other employees to treat physicians to meals, entertainment, trips, gift cards and gifts to coax them into prescribing its drugs. Prosecutors also claim that Aqua hired doctors for speaking engagements, advisory boards and consulting services for the same reason. Almirall maintains executive offices in Exton.

The whistleblower case was brought under the False Claims Act by the U.S. Attorney's Office in cooperation with the Office of the Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

“Federal law is designed to ensure that doctors and other providers are not improperly influenced by pharmaceutical companies in deciding which drugs to prescribe,” said U.S. Attorney William McSwain in a statement Wednesday. “Our office will do everything in its power to ensure that pharmaceutical companies and prescribers are playing by the rules and that they are not enriching themselves at the expense of patients' well-being, especially those covered by Medicare and Tricare, the insurance for members of the armed services. This settlement is just the latest example of our office's strong partnership with HHS-OIG and the Defense Health Agency to protect the integrity of our health care programs.”

Almirall's counsel, Eric Breslin of Duane Morris in New York City, did not respond to a request for comment.

“Pharmaceutical companies that ignore rules designed to protect patients will be held accountable. Patients must be able to trust that decisions made by their doctors are based on unbiased professional judgment and not personal gain,” said Maureen R. Dixon, special agent in charge of the Office of the Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in Philadelphia. “We will continue to work with the U.S. Attorney's Office in this District to root out all forms of waste, fraud and abuse in our federal health care programs.”

According to prosecutors, the whistleblower in the case will receive $735,000 as her share of the recovery in the case. That individual was represented by Brian J. McCormick Jr. of Ross Feller Casey and Claudine Q. Homolash of the CQH Firm.