Humana agrees not to reference Teva's Israel ties at US drug trial
HUM•Humana agrees to avoid Israel reference at trial
WASHINGTON, Aug. 13 (Reuters) - Health insurer Humana HUM.N has agreed not to refer to drugmaker Teva TEVA.TA as an Israeli company at an upcoming U.S. drug price-fixing trial, after the drugmaker said public views on the Gaza war could unfairly influence jurors.
Humana disclosed its agreement with Teva in a Wednesday night filing in the federal court in Philadelphia, where Teva and several other major pharmaceutical companies are due to stand trial next month on claims they conspired to inflate the prices of some generic drugs.
Trial filings and alleged drug price inflation claims
Humana in its filing on Wednesday said that its lawyers during the trial "will not make references in argument or questioning relating to the fact that Teva is an Israeli company."
The agreement does not restrict Humana from introducing documents at the trial just because "the fact that Teva is an Israeli company can be adduced from the document.”
Teva has denied Humana's allegations that it conspired with other drugmakers to keep the prices of some drugs artificially high. The drugs include the muscle relaxant baclofen and blood pressure medication propranolol. The claims in the lawsuit are directed at Teva's U.S.-based subsidiary.
The price-fixing trial is scheduled to begin on September 15 and end in late October.
Teva argued national origin references could prejudice jurors
The agreement underscores how divisive the issue has become in the United States following Israel's military assault on the Gaza Strip, triggered by Hamas' October 2023 attack on Israel.
