Zeldes Haeggquist & Eck, LLP, a shareholder and consumer rights litigation firm, has commenced an investigation into possible violations of the federal securities laws by certain officers and directors at INSYS Therapeutics, Inc.
Insys is a specialty pharmaceutical company that develops and commercializes supportive care products primarily designed to assist patients with pain management. Insys’ core product and source of revenue is Subsys, a form of fentanyl that is sprayed under the tongue.
On June 10, 2016, CNBC and The New York Times reported that two former Insys employees, Jonathan Roper and Fernando Serrano, were arrested on June 9, 2016 on federal anti-kickback charges, accused of paying thousands of dollars to doctors who prescribed the company’s main drug, Subsys through “sham educational programs.” On this news, the company’s share price dropped over 12 percent.
Subsys is approved by the FDA for use only in patients who have cancer and experience pain even though they are on round-the-clock painkillers. However, Insys has been accused of paying doctors to prescribe it for patients who have migraines or even minor neck or back pain.
Federal prosecutors say the case is particularly egregious because it involves the inappropriate marketing of fentanyl, a drug that is 100 times more potent morphine and is incredibly dangerous and highly addictive. Fentanyl is the drug that the musician Prince accidentally overdosed on.
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