• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Analysts expected oil to surge above $200 but China has quietly kept prices half of that—and can’t for much longer

2

Corporate America has been draining the world's water. Matt Damon's new campaign calls on Gap, Starbucks, and Amazon to help give it back

3

Current price of oil as of June 11, 2026

1

Analysts expected oil to surge above $200 but China has quietly kept prices half of that—and can’t for much longer

2

Corporate America has been draining the world's water. Matt Damon's new campaign calls on Gap, Starbucks, and Amazon to help give it back

3

Current price of oil as of June 11, 2026
HealthCelgene

Whistleblower Claims Celgene Colluded With Charities to Drive Profits

By
Sy Mukherjee
Sy Mukherjee
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Sy Mukherjee
Sy Mukherjee
Down Arrow Button Icon
August 1, 2016, 3:58 PM ET
Courtesy of Celgene

Biotech giant Celgene is being accused of (CELG) illegally colluding with medical charities to boost sales of its pricey cancer drugs.

The allegations are made in a whistleblower suit by former Celgene sales rep Beverly Brown and detailed in documents filed in federal court last week, according to Bloomberg. They claim that the company donated hundreds of millions of dollars to charities like the Patient Access Network (PAN) Foundation and the Chronic Disease Fund (CDF) “as part of a core business scheme to gain billions” from government health programs. The charities assist patients with accessing expensive blood cancer medications like Celgene’s Revlimid by helping them afford their drug co-pays. Annual out-of-pocket costs for the drug can exceed $10,000 for patients and had sales of $1.7 billion in the second quarter of 2016, the company announced last week.

Brown and her lawyers say that Celgene ran afoul of anti-kickback statutes by coordinating with the charities. Companies aren’t supposed to know exactly how their donated money is being spent and are barred from giving money directly to patients covered by Medicare prescription drug plans.

Click here to subscribe to our upcoming Brainstorm Health Daily Newsletter.

But an expert witness hired by Brown’s legal team says that Celgene’s arrangements with the charities in question include significant requirements for the nonprofits to disclose detailed information like how many patients had applied for co-pay assistance and how much of Celgene’s donations were still remaining. That “strongly indicates that CDF and PAN Foundation provided Celgene with the information it needed to be sure it would fully fund all co-pays needed for its products and that it successfully aligned its funding to achieve this goal,” wrote the expert witness, University of Southern California pharmaceutical economics professor Joel Hay.

“Ms. Brown is wrong and her allegations are baseless,” a Celgene spokesperson told Fortune in an emailed statement. “[The government] has issued guidance related to donations by medical innovators to charitable patient assistance programs. Celgene complies with that guidance with respect to its donations to patient assistance programs.” The two charities mentioned in the case are not named as co-defendants.

Celgene has also received a subpoena from the Department of Justice regarding its patient assistance programs and how closely it works with medical charities. The Justice Department’s investigation is separate from Brown’s whistleblower case, which the DoJ has declined to join so far.

And the biotech isn’t the first to be scrutinized over its practices. Amid a maelstrom of criticism against biopharmaceutical companies for high drug costs and price hikes, major industry players have pointed to patient assistance programs, arguing that people who need the treatments would never have to pay the full list price. Still, that does little to help insurers and public health plans that must still pay exorbitant amounts of money for the medications.

Valeant Pharmaceuticals (VRX) is also being investigated for its drug pricing and patient assistance programs, and biotechs Gilead (GILD) and Biogen (BIIB) have received similar federal subpoenas regarding patient assistance charities.

About the Author
By Sy Mukherjee
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Health

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Health

A person holds an iPhone as someone next to them points at the screen.
EconomyApple iPhone
You can blame America’s plummeting fertility rate on the iPhone, study finds: ‘People are all depressed and alone and doomscrolling’
By Sasha RogelbergJune 12, 2026
8 hours ago
fda
HealthTobacco
Why is the FDA approving kid-friendly, fruit-flavored e-cigarettes?
By Matthew Perrone and The Associated PressJune 12, 2026
8 hours ago
Testosil Review (2026): Testosterone Supplement Reviewed
HealthDietary Supplements
Testosil Review (2026): Testosterone Supplement Reviewed
By Christina SnyderJune 11, 2026
19 hours ago
BrickHouse Nutrition Field of Greens Review (2026)
HealthDietary Supplements
BrickHouse Nutrition Field of Greens Review (2026)
By Emily PharesJune 11, 2026
19 hours ago
worm
HealthFood and drink
The pest that could devastate the American cattle industry was in Texas, but now it’s in New Mexico, too
By Jeffrey Collins and The Associated PressJune 9, 2026
3 days ago
A man put a drink in front of Trump
HealthFood and drink
A Biden-era study told Americans to drink less alcohol. The Trump admin ‘sidelined’ the research facing pressure from the alcohol lobby
By Laura Ungar, Ali Swenson and The Associated PressJune 9, 2026
3 days ago

Most Popular

Analysts expected oil to surge above $200 but China has quietly kept prices half of that—and can’t for much longer
Energy
Analysts expected oil to surge above $200 but China has quietly kept prices half of that—and can’t for much longer
By Sasha RogelbergJune 10, 2026
2 days ago
Corporate America has been draining the world's water. Matt Damon's new campaign calls on Gap, Starbucks, and Amazon to help give it back
Environment
Corporate America has been draining the world's water. Matt Damon's new campaign calls on Gap, Starbucks, and Amazon to help give it back
By Catherina GioinoJune 9, 2026
3 days ago
Current price of oil as of June 11, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of June 11, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJune 11, 2026
1 day ago
When SpaceX starts trading, some 'shareholders' will discover they own nothing at all
Investing
When SpaceX starts trading, some 'shareholders' will discover they own nothing at all
By Jim EdwardsJune 12, 2026
5 hours ago
Marc Lore’s robots make 500 burrito bowls an hour. A human can make 45
Innovation
Marc Lore’s robots make 500 burrito bowls an hour. A human can make 45
By Amanda GerutJune 9, 2026
3 days ago
Costco CEO Ron Vachris rose from forklift driver to the C-suite without a college degree: ‘Don’t chase a title’ is the career advice that got him there
Success
Costco CEO Ron Vachris rose from forklift driver to the C-suite without a college degree: ‘Don’t chase a title’ is the career advice that got him there
By Preston ForeJune 8, 2026
4 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.