Plaintiffs v CSL
Hospitals In Queue To Sue CSL
A MULTIMILLION-dollar class action lawsuit against CSL has dramatically expanded after 11 US hospitals signed up as plaintiffs against the blood plasma company and its chief rival Baxter, claiming Australia's biggest health-care company engaged in cartel behavior.
Documents lodged with the Illinois Northern and Pennsylvania Eastern federal courts reveal an acceleration of litigants stepping forward since September to accuse CSL of involvement in a conspiracy to fix the prices of plasma products.
The US hospitals, which include Northwest Iowa, St Luke's Methodist, Detroit Medical Centre and Trinity Regional Medical Centre, are asking for more than $A100 million in damages and demanding a trial by jury.
Their case against CSL, its key plasma business CSL Behring, and Baxter will rely heavily on untested allegations made by the US Federal Trade Commission in June when the powerful regulator blocked CSL's $US3.1 billion takeover bid for Talecris Biotherapeutics.
At the time the FTC made a string of accusations against CSL and players in the plasma industry, revolving around the operation of a ''tight oligopoly'' that was engaged in market rigging and limiting the supply of life-saving therapies to push up prices. These allegations were never tested in court.
Hospital plaintiffs in a civil action are represented by Jeffrey Kodroff of Spector Roseman Kodroff & Willis, which specializes in class action suits.
Pemiscot Memorial Hospital, which services several counties in south-east Missouri, became the first client for the class action in July and was quickly followed by Solaris Health System, operator of the JFK Medical Centre.
In the last month the number of plaintiffs pushed over 10 and mainly includes hospitals in the US Midwest states of Iowa and Michigan. There is also a handful of hospitals in the American territory of Puerto Rico.
For more information please contact:
Jeffrey Kodroff
Spector Roseman Kodroff & Willis
1818 Market Street, Suite 2500
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103
Tel: +1 215 496 0300
Fax: +1 215 496 6611
888-844-5862
