The office of Attorney General Mike Cox announced last week that Michigan will receive $26.4 million as part of a settlement between pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly and the federal government and all 50 state governments over the company’s illegal marketing of an anti-psychotic drug.
 

Between 1999 and 2005, Eli Lilly promoted the sale and use of Zyprexa through a marketing campaign called “Viva Zyprexa” for certain uses which the Food and Drug Administration had not approved. The marketing activities promoted Zyprexa not only to psychiatrists, but also to primary care physicians, for such unapproved uses as the treatment of depression, anxiety, irritability, disrupted sleep, nausea and gambling addiction. Eli Lilly also provided compensation and other things of value to health care professionals. As a result, Michigan’s Medicaid program funded use of the drug for unapproved illnesses.

The settlement included $800 million to be divided up among the states to reimburse them for medicaid payments for the drug as well as a $615 million federal criminal penalty. Eli Lilly may still be liable for any adverse health effects from consumers who took the drug.