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AbbVie Peer-to-Peer Speaker Programs
I’m Christopher (Chris) Crennen, a Colorado attorney, looking into AbbVie’s health care provider (HCP) speaker programs. Payments by pharmaceutical companies to HCPs who prescribe their drugs may violate kickback laws and the False Claims Act. HCPs who receive speaker fees and meals may be tempted to prescribe expensive brand name drugs when no drug or a generic might be a better choice for the patient’s health and the financial health of the United States.
I’ve been an attorney in Denver, Colorado for many years. My good standing as a Colorado attorney can be confirmed here by typing my last name in the search box. A recent article I wrote What Makes Pharmaceutical Speaker Programs Illegal? was published by The Daily Economy and the American Institute for Economic Research.
The False Claims Act (FCA) was signed by Abraham Lincoln in 1863 to protect the Union Army from fraud by supply contractors. The FCA contains qui tam provisions which allow private individuals with detailed and specific knowledge of false claims against federal programs (such as Medicare) to file a Complaint in federal court and share in the award if the case is settled. A person who files such a case is called a qui tam relator and may be entitled to 15% to 30% of the settlement.
Speaker program settlements:
Gilead Sciences. A 2025 press release announced a $202 million settlement against Gilead Sciences for using speaker programs to pay kickbacks to doctors. The government joined a whistleblower lawsuit that had been filed under the False Claims Act.
Biogen. A 2022 press release announced a $900 million settlement against pharmaceutical company Biogen Inc. to resolve allegations it paid kickbacks to physicians in the form of speaker honoraria, training fees, consulting fees, and meals. The relator’s share, a former employee, was reportedly $266.4 million.
Teva. A 2020 posting announced a $54 million settlement against Teva Pharmaceuticals to resolve allegations it tracked speakers’ prescription writing and used speaker programs to pay unlawful compensation to doctors. The relator’s share was reportedly $15.6 million.
See more speaker program settlements.
Novartis. A 2020 press release announced a $678 million settlement against Novartis Pharmaceuticals to resolve allegations it used sham speaker programs to pay over $100 million to doctors. The case was brought to the government’s attention by a whistleblower who filed a complaint under the False Claims Act.
Salix. A 2016 press release announced a $54 million settlement against Salix Pharmaceuticals to resolve allegations it used speaker programs to pay illegal kickbacks to doctors. The government joined two whistleblower lawsuits filed under the False Claims Act.
Daiichi Sankyo. A 2015 press release announced a $39 million settlement against pharmaceutical manufacturer Daiichi Sankyo to resolve allegations it paid kickbacks to physicians who participated in speaker programs. The settlement stemmed from a complaint filed by a former sales representative who received $6.1 million.
The 9(b) particularity rule. The relator’s Complaint must be written with sufficient detail and particularity to survive a defendant’s motion to dismiss. The particularity rule is often the main obstacle to a successful settlement. Camburn v. Novartis provides examples of the details and specificity required.
See examples of required details.
Camburn provides witnesses he alleges will provide testimony that managers instructed reps to offer speaker fees to doctors as financial incentive for Gilenya prescriptions. Camburn alleges, by name and location, three physicians Novartis paid for canceled events, including amounts paid ($20,000 to $22,000) in a two-year period and the value of claims submitted to Medicare Part D in the same period. Camburn alleges “lavish” steak dinners at a Florida restaurant with a tab totaling $1080 and “extravagant” meals at 211 York and CHOPS II with dates, venues, and names of doctors and attendees. According to the decision: “These details satisfy Rule 9(b).”
Details and specifics of IQVIA access to track prescribing data before and after events could be especially valuable.
OIG Special Fraud Alert: Speaker Programs. The Office of Inspector General (OIG) rarely issues special fraud alerts. The Special Fraud Alert: Speaker Programs shows a special interest in stopping payments to providers that encourage prescriptions. The special fraud alert describes many activities that the OIG believes violate the anti-kickback statute. The fraud alert says the “OIG is skeptical about the educational value of such programs. Our investigations … strongly suggest that one purpose of the remuneration to the HCP speaker and attendees is to induce or reward referrals. Furthermore, studies have shown that HCPs who receive remuneration from a company are more likely to prescribe or order that company’s products.” … “There are many other ways for HCPs to obtain information about drug and device products and disease states that do not involve remuneration to HCPs.”
Questions about speaker programs:
Intent. AbbVie’s registration form for the Vraylar speaker programs states: “This is a promotional event sponsored by AbbVie.” Were other written or oral statements made that at least one purpose of speaker programs was to promote the sale of medicines? Were the educational v. promotional purposes of speaker programs discussed? Did you hear comments that the purpose of a speaker program was to promote sales and use of a drug? Were instructions or statements made that concerned you?
Tracking prescriptions. Are you familiar with IQVIA Xponent, Veeva CRM, Wolters Kluwer, Claritas RX, ConcertAI, and other tracking tools? Were the prescribing histories of speakers or attendees tracked before and after events? Were amounts paid by Medicare, Medicaid, and TRICARE tracked? How did speaker fees affect prescriptions? How did meals for attendees affect prescriptions? Did you have access to prescription data for speakers or attendees? Do you know who had access to prescribing data? Are you aware of oral or written comments on the effect of speaker programs on prescriptions?
See more questions on speaker programs.
Selecting speakers. How were speakers selected? Did sales team members ever nominate speakers? Were prescriptions used to begin or end employment of speakers? Was a return on investment analysis used to identify speakers? Were speakers selected based on past or potential prescribing? For how long are speakers employed? Did prescriptions affect future employment?
Paying speakers. How are speaker fees set? How is fair market value determined? Were there caps for annual fees paid a speaker? Were there caps on the number of speeches for a speaker? Were speaker fees based on past or future potential prescriptions? Were speaker training fees paid to speakers? Were travel costs paid to speakers? Were consulting fees paid to speakers? Were speaker fees paid if events were canceled?
Attendees. Were HCPs invited to register for speeches? Who decides who is invited? Is prescription data used to decide who to invite? Who decides if an attendee is qualified to attend? Were past attendees allowed to attend the same speech again? Were speakers allowed to attend a speech they have given? Were spouses and family ever allowed to attend? Was an HCP’s staff ever allowed to attend? Are lists of speech attendees available?
Speeches. Did speeches include a slide presentation? Who prepared the slide presentation? Can speakers deviate from the slide presentation? Were slide presentations approved by the government? Did AbbVie have sales reps attending the speeches? Were questions asked following or during the speeches? Were speeches ever given which because of the speech or the venue had little substantive value? Were generic alternatives discussed in speeches?
Meals. At what different restaurants and other venues were speaker programs held? Were programs held at restaurants, entertainment, or sports venues that were not suitable for educational programs? Were speeches held at expensive restaurants where alcohol was served? Was free alcohol offered? Is a list of restaurants available where speeches were given? What was the average and highest cost of meals?
“If we have learned anything from a decade worth of litigation, it is that the pharmaceutical industry pays the vast majority of physicians for one reason: to market their drugs. And why would we have ever thought otherwise?” Neurology Clinical Practice, April 2014
Please contact me with any questions or comments whether you believe you might have a case or not. You can use the form below if you wish me to call you, or just reply to an InMail. Please understand that I do not represent you as an attorney unless we have a written agreement that I represent you. Also, please do not send sensitive documents or information through ordinary email.
If you have enough detailed, specific information I may be able to convince a law firm that can file in a favorable jurisdiction to take on joint responsibility for your case. If the case is eventually successful, my fees are a share of the agreed attorney fees and not in addition to other fees. Law firms I contact are governed by professional rules of confidentiality of information as I am in Colorado.
If you have information about speaker programs, I’d encourage you to contact me. These cases can be financially rewarding for a relator. But equally important, the False Claims Act is one of the few tools available to slow the explosion of Medicare and Medicaid costs and the national debt.
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