January 13, 2026 – Philadelphia, PA – Grabar Law Office has filed a major federal lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey on behalf of The Washington University, d/b/a Washington University in St. Louis (“WashU”), against pharmaceutical giants Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk, and Sanofi, along with the nation’s three largest pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs)—CVS Caremark, Express Scripts, and OptumRx. The complaint alleges a collusive, two-sided kickback scheme where manufacturers dramatically raised list prices for insulin in exchange for favorable formulary placement from PBMs, thereby inflating costs for employer health plans and other payors.
According to the complaint, the alleged “Insulin Pricing Scheme” has driven up the cost of life-saving diabetes medications by as much as 1,000% over the past two decades. These inflated prices led to excessive out-of-pocket costs for patients and dramatically increased expenditures for institutional self-insured health care purchasers like WashU.
The lawsuit asserts violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, Violations of Section 1 of the Sherman Act of 1890, 15 U.S.C. § 1, Violation of the Missouri Antitrust Law Mo. Rev. Stat. § 416.011, et seq., Common Law Fraud, Unjust Enrichment, Civil Conspiracy, and the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act (“MMPA”) Mo. Rev. Stat. § 407.010, et seq.
WashU brings this action as a self-insured employer that paid for insulin under its employee health plans, which were directly affected by the inflated prices caused by the unlawful conduct alleged. WashU aims not only to recover financial losses but also to address broader inequities in drug pricing practices that affect millions of Americans who rely on life-sustaining medications, such as insulin.
Case Information:
The Washington University, d/b/a Washington University in St. Louis v. Eli Lilly and Co., et al., Case No. 2:26-cv-00400-BRM-LDW (D.N.J.).
A copy of the complaint can be viewed here:
For more information, contact us today!
