A third party settlement administrator will determine the amount of the settlement funds to be allocated to the County. The amount of the County’s allocation will be based on the number of claims submitted and the total dollar amount of the County’s qualifying purchases.
On December 17, 2013, the Board of Supervisors authorized the County’s participation in a partial settlement in In re: Plasma-Derivative Protein Therapies Antitrust Litigation, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois Case No. 09-CV-7666, a class action lawsuit involving claims related to the sale of immunoglobulin and albumin between July 1, 2003 and December 31, 2009. The first partial settlement was with CSL Limited, CSL Behring Limited, LLC, CSL Plasma, Inc., and Plasma Protein Therapeutics Association.
On January 8, 2014, the Court approved a second settlement in the lawsuit. This second settlement is with Baxter Healthcare Corporation and Baxter International, Inc. (together, “Baxter”), and will require Baxter to pay $64 million into a settlement fund, to be allocated among the plaintiff-class members. As in the previous settlement, the settlement funds to be paid by Baxter will be allocated among plaintiff-class members that participate in this second settlement based on the number of claims submitted and the total dollar amount of the class member’s qualifying purchases from Baxter. Participation in this second settlement will enable the County to be allocated a portion of the settlement funds to be paid by Baxter based on the amount of its qualifying purchases.
The Court will hold a fairness hearing on April 16, 2014. At the fairness hearing, the Court will certify the settling plaintiff class and conclude this lawsuit as to Baxter. In order for the County to participate in this second settlement in the lawsuit, the Board of Supervisors must approve the proposed second settlement and authorize the Health Services Department Director, or designee, to submit claim forms to the third-party settlement administrator by April 7, 2014. Like the previous settlement in which the County participated, if the Board of Supervisors authorizes the County to participate in this second settlement, it will release Baxter from all claims related to any violation of state or federal law while selling immunoglobulin and albumin up to the present time, whether or not the violations were covered under the lawsuit. (The Settlement Agreement is available at www.PlasmaTherapySettlement.com.)
If the Board of Supervisors does not approve participating in this second settlement, the County will not be entitled to any of the settlement funds paid by Baxter. Further, to assert its individual claims against Baxter, which the class and its attorneys have asserted on behalf of the County and other class members in the lawsuit, the County would need to initiate costly litigation against Baxter.
For the foregoing reasons, Health Services Department staff recommends that the Board of Supervisors approve participating in this second settlement, and direct the Health Services Department Director, or designee, to submit claim forms by April 7, 2014.
If the Board of Supervisors does not approve participating in this second settlement, the County will not be entitled to any of the settlement funds paid by Baxter.