PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Michael Undorf, Deputy Attorney General

Phone: (302) 577-8924

Date: December 2, 2003

Filing Period for Claims Against Taxol®  Manufacturer Extended

(Wilmington, DE): The period for filing claims against the maker of the anti-cancer drug Taxol® has been extended until the end of January, Attorney General M. Jane Brady said today. The United States District Court for the District of Columbia recently extended the deadline for filing a claim from November 14, 2003 until January 31, 2004. The drug’s manufacturer, Bristol Myers-Squibb agreed to the settlement to resolve antitrust charges that the pharmaceutical manufacturer unlawfully kept lower-priced generics off the market.



Despite advertising in scores of national publications, the claim rate for reimbursement has been lower than expected, prompting the states to seek the extension, Brady said.

Part of the problem for consumers is that Taxol® is used to fight advanced breast, ovarian, lung and AIDS-related cancers. Unfortunately, some people treated with Taxol® or paclitaxel during the claims period may now be deceased.



“The claims do not end when the patient who was overcharged dies. Representatives can file on behalf of estates,” Brady said. “I urge all estate executors to look into whether the estate they are administering is eligible.”

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Taxol Rebate Deadline Extended

December 2, 2003





The national settlement against Bristol Myers-Squibb resulted in a $55 million settlement. Of that settlement, $12.5 million was earmarked for individual consumers. The balance reimbursed state employee health and Medicaid programs which paid the bulk of the overcharges. 

Persons who were treated with the cancer drug Taxol®, or its generic version, paclitaxel between January 1, 1999 through February 28, 2003 and who paid all or a part of the costs of drug treatment out-of-pocket are eligible to submit a claim. 



Payments will be based on each consumer’s individual case, not by how much is in the consumer reimbursement fund. Depending on the number of treatments and insurance coverage, a claimant could receive hundreds of dollars.



For more information about the claims process, visit the Attorney General’s website at attorneygeneral.delaware.gov/, and click on the link under the “Current/Recent Information” section on the homepage or www.taxolsettlement.com. Consumers may also call the Taxol® Settlement Hotline at 1-800-659-7609.



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