Pfizer Inc, as per US Department of Justice’s ruling will pay $55 million plus interest to settle allegations that its subsidiary, Wyeth LLC, promoted its acid reflux drug Protonix for unapproved uses by the Food and Drug Administration.
Wyeth, which Pfizer acquired in 2009, bagged FDA approval to promote Protonix only for short-term treatment of erosive esophagitis. The condition is associated with gastro-esophageal reflux disease. Wyeth allegedly promoted Protonix for all forms of GERD from February 2000 to June 2001. The Justice Department charged Wyeth of training its sales force to promote Protonix for all forms of GERD, which is far more common and likely to lead to significantly higher sales. GERD is a condition in which food or liquid leak backwards from the stomach into the esophagus.
Pfizer is 40 per cent held by the American parent company, Pfizer Inc, which is world's leading biopharmaceutical company.
