Novartis, the Swiss pharmaceutical company, has paid well over a billion dollars to resolve a series of lawsuits and government enforcement actions covering kickbacks to doctors and pharmacies, foreign bribery, gender discrimination, and antitrust violations, and it continues to face active litigation in 2026 over generic drug price-fixing and patient data privacy. Below is a rundown of the major Novartis lawsuits and settlements, from the largest historical resolutions to the cases still open.
The $729 Million Kickback Settlement
Novartis’s largest U.S. resolution came on July 1, 2020, when Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation agreed to pay more than $729 million to settle two sets of civil fraud allegations brought by the Department of Justice.1U.S. Department of Justice. Novartis Pays Over $642 Million to Settle Allegations of Improper Payments to Patients and Physicians
The larger piece, $678 million, resolved claims that Novartis ran tens of thousands of sham “speaker programs” between 2002 and 2011 that functioned as vehicles for bribing doctors with expensive meals, alcohol, and speaking fees in exchange for prescribing cardiovascular and diabetes drugs including Lotrel, Diovan, and Exforge. The government alleged Novartis held roughly 525,000 events over that period and spent more than $100 million in honoraria.2NYU Journal of Legislation and Public Policy. A Little More Sunshine That figure broke down into $591.4 million in federal False Claims Act damages, $38.4 million in civil forfeiture tied to Anti-Kickback Statute violations, and $48.2 million for state Medicaid claims.3CNBC. Novartis Pays $729 Million to Settle U.S. Kickback Charges The case began as a whistleblower suit filed by former sales representative Oswald Bilotta in the Southern District of New York.4U.S. Department of Justice. United States Files Complaint Against Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp for Allegedly Paying Kickbacks to Doctors
The remaining $51.25 million settled separate claims that between 2010 and 2014, Novartis funneled money through three charitable foundations to cover Medicare patient copayments for the multiple sclerosis drug Gilenya and the cancer drug Afinitor, effectively using the charities to induce patients to use its products.3CNBC. Novartis Pays $729 Million to Settle U.S. Kickback Charges
Alongside the payments, Novartis entered a five-year Corporate Integrity Agreement with the HHS Office of Inspector General requiring drastic cuts to speaker program spending, a shift to virtual-only formats, and executive-level compliance certifications. HHS records still list the agreement as active, with an estimated completion date of June 2025.5HHS Office of Inspector General. Novartis Corporation Corporate Integrity Agreement
Earlier Kickback Settlements
In November 2015, Novartis paid $390 million to resolve a separate False Claims Act case alleging kickbacks to pharmacies to recommend six specialty medications: the oncology drugs Exjade, Gleevec, and Tasigna; the transplant drug Myfortic; and the cystic fibrosis treatments TOBI and TOBI Podhaler. Filed by whistleblower David Kester in the Southern District of New York, it was described at the time as the largest government recovery ever in a False Claims Act case built solely on a kickback theory.6Susman Godfrey LLP. In Massive Victory for Whistleblower David Kester, USA and States, Novartis Pays $390 Million to End Kickback Case
Both cases followed a September 2010 DOJ settlement over similar speaker-program, advisory-board, and gift schemes tied to Diovan, Exforge, Tekturna, Trileptal, Zelnorm, and Sandostatin. That earlier resolution also produced a five-year Corporate Integrity Agreement, and the fact that similar conduct allegedly continued afterward drove the size of the 2020 settlement.7California Attorney General. Novartis Settlement Agreement
Foreign Bribery: $345 Million FCPA Resolution
On June 25, 2020, Novartis agreed to pay $345 million to resolve Foreign Corrupt Practices Act violations in Greece and Vietnam. Novartis Hellas was charged with conspiring between 2012 and 2015 to bribe employees of state-owned Greek hospitals and clinics by funding travel to international medical congresses in exchange for prescriptions of the eye drug Lucentis, and with making improper payments through a sham epidemiological study in 2009 and 2010. The subsidiary entered a deferred prosecution agreement and paid $225 million in criminal penalties.8U.S. Department of Justice. Novartis AG and Subsidiaries Pay $345 Million to Resolve Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Cases DOJ noted that Novartis qualified as a “recidivist” in setting the penalty.9Stanford Law School FCPA Clearinghouse. Novartis AG Enforcement Action
Alcon Pte Ltd, a former Novartis subsidiary, paid about $8.9 million for bribing hospital employees in Vietnam between 2011 and 2014 to boost sales of intraocular lenses. The SEC separately ordered Novartis to pay $112 million in disgorgement and prejudgment interest for related books-and-records and internal-controls violations.9Stanford Law School FCPA Clearinghouse. Novartis AG Enforcement Action The 2020 penalties followed a 2016 SEC settlement in which Novartis paid $25 million in disgorgement, interest, and penalties over pay-to-prescribe schemes at Chinese subsidiaries.10U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Novartis AG Administrative Proceeding
Gender Discrimination: The Velez Class Action
In May 2010, a Manhattan federal jury in Velez v. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation found the company liable for class-wide gender discrimination against more than 5,600 current and former female sales representatives employed between July 2002 and 2007. After a month-long trial, jurors awarded $3.36 million in compensatory damages to 12 named plaintiffs and imposed $250 million in punitive damages for the class, finding discrimination in pay, promotions, and treatment of pregnant employees.11Feather Law Firm. Drug Giant Novartis Suffers Huge Defeat in Gender Discrimination Lawsuit
Within weeks the parties reached a $175 million settlement, including $152.5 million for backpay, damages, and litigation costs plus internal reform measures. Judge Colleen McMahon finalized the settlement in November 2010, and court-monitored compliance ended in April 2014.12Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse. Velez v. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation
Antitrust Cases
Exforge Pay-for-Delay
Novartis and generic maker Par Pharmaceutical faced a Southern District of New York class action alleging a “reverse payment” deal that delayed generic competition for the blood pressure drug Exforge. Plaintiffs claimed Novartis agreed not to launch its own authorized generic during Par’s 180-day exclusivity window, keeping prices artificially high.13Reuters. Novartis to Pay $30 Million to Health Plans, Consumers Over Exforge Antitrust Claims Novartis reached settlements with all plaintiff groups in 2023, with $30 million going to health plans and consumers. Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein granted final approval that year.14Garwin Gerstein & Fisher LLP. Novartis and Par Antitrust Litigation
The 2026 Multistate Generic Price-Fixing Suit
On February 3, 2026, a coalition of 42 states and territories sued Novartis AG, Sandoz AG, and Sandoz Group AG, alleging the companies conspired with other generic manufacturers to fix prices, allocate markets, and rig bids for 31 generic drugs.15Maryland Attorney General. Attorney General Brown Announces Settlements and Sues Novartis and Sandoz The complaint also alleges Novartis deliberately drained assets from Sandoz before spinning it off in October 2023 to shield itself from liability in three earlier state antitrust cases.16WRNJ Radio. New Jersey Joins Multistate Lawsuit Alleging Prescription Drug Price-Fixing by Novartis, Sandoz The states’ investigation draws on more than 20 million documents and phone records involving over 600 industry sales and pricing personnel, and the first trial in the broader enforcement effort is expected in Connecticut in late 2026.17Washington Attorney General. AG Brown Announces $17.85 Million Settlements in Ongoing Drug Price-Fixing Conspiracy
Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Challenge
After the heart failure drug Entresto was selected for the first round of Medicare drug price negotiations under the Inflation Reduction Act, Novartis sued to block the program. The negotiated “maximum fair price” for Entresto was set at $295 for a 30-day supply, down from a list price of $628, effective January 1, 2026.18Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Fact Sheet: Negotiated Prices for Initial Price Applicability Year 2026 Novartis said it accepted the price only to avoid what it called “untenable options including catastrophic fines or the removal of all our products from both Medicare and Medicaid.”19Novartis. Novartis Statement on Maximum Fair Price for Entresto
The company argued in the District of New Jersey that the program violated the Excessive Fines Clause, the Takings Clause, and the First Amendment. The district court sided with the government, and in September 2025 the Third Circuit unanimously affirmed, making it the 14th court ruling to uphold the program.20Patients for Affordable Drugs. Federal Court Rejects Novartis’s Case Against Medicare Negotiation The Supreme Court denied Novartis’s petition for certiorari in Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. v. Kennedy (No. 25-902) on May 18, 2026, ending the challenge.21SCOTUSblog. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. v. Kennedy
Henrietta Lacks Estate Settlement
In August 2024, the estate of Henrietta Lacks sued Novartis in federal court in Baltimore, alleging the company unjustly profited from the HeLa cell line taken from Lacks’s cervical tumor without her knowledge or consent at Johns Hopkins Hospital in 1951. The estate said Novartis held hundreds of patents developed through HeLa cells and had used them in products including the herpes drug Famvir, the CAR-T therapy Kymriah, and the gene therapy Zolgensma. It sought Novartis’s full net profits from the cell line.22Fierce Pharma. Novartis Settles Lawsuit With Estate of Baltimore Woman Whose Cells Were Extracted 75 Years Ago
The parties announced a settlement in February 2026 on undisclosed terms, saying in a joint statement they were “pleased they were able to find a way to resolve this matter filed by Henrietta Lacks’ Estate outside of court.”23STAT News. Henrietta Lacks Novartis Settlement Over HeLa Cell Line The estate had previously settled with Thermo Fisher Scientific in 2023, and its cases against Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical and Viatris remained active in early 2026.24MedPage Today. Henrietta Lacks Estate Settlement With Novartis
Zolgensma Data Manipulation
In August 2019, the FDA disclosed that AveXis, a Novartis subsidiary, had submitted manipulated animal testing data to support approval of Zolgensma, a $2.1 million gene therapy for spinal muscular atrophy. AveXis had been aware of potential data integrity problems since January 2018 but did not notify the FDA until five weeks after Zolgensma’s May 2019 approval.25CNN. Zolgensma Data Manipulation FDA Novartis SMA Inspectors found mouse survival data had been altered by up to 19 days.26Pearl Pathways. The Novartis Data Scandal Explained The FDA concluded the compromised data related to a manufacturing assay rather than clinical trial results, kept Zolgensma on the market, and declined to pursue civil or criminal penalties, categorizing its findings as “voluntary action indicated.”27Fierce Pharma. FDA Lets Novartis Off the Hook for Zolgensma Data Manipulation
2026 Tracking Pixel Privacy Class Action
On March 19, 2026, a breast cancer patient identified as “P.M.” filed a proposed class action in the District of New Jersey alleging Novartis embedded tracking pixels on its branded drug discount websites — including sites for Kisqali, Cosentyx, Entresto, Leqvio, and Pluvicto — that transmitted patients’ medical conditions, prescription information, and other sensitive health data to Google and the analytics firm Contentsquare without consent.28Bloomberg Law. Novartis Sued Over Tracking Pixels on Drug Discount Websites The plaintiff says she began receiving targeted online ads related to her cancer diagnosis after visiting the Kisqali website. Claims include violations of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, HIPAA-related privacy violations, breach of fiduciary duty, negligence, and unjust enrichment.29Pharmaphorum. Patient Sues Novartis Claiming Data Tracking Privacy Breach The case had not advanced beyond its initial filing as of late March 2026.30Health Exec. Novartis Sued for Allegedly Leaking Data of Breast Cancer Patient to Google, Contentsquare