Drug companies to pay Hawaii $700 million to settle Plavix blood thinner lawsuit
A court ruling last year ordered Bristol Myers Squibb Company and three U.S.-based subsidiaries of French pharmaceutical company Sanofi to pay a combined $916 million.
But before an appeal was decided, a settlement was reached for the lower amount, the attorney general's office said.
A statement distributed by Sanofi said the companies 'are pleased to resolve this litigation, and to continue their companies' focus on discovering, developing, and delivering innovative medicines to patients.'
'Plavix has helped millions of people with cardiovascular disease around the world for nearly 30 years and it continues to be endorsed as a first-line therapy by leading treatment guidelines across the globe,' it added.
First Circuit Court Judge James Ashford found that there was a risk that about 30% of patients, particularly non-Caucasians, might have a 'diminished response' to Plavix but the companies did not update their labels, Attorney General Anne Lopez said last year.
Gov. Josh Green called it a 'landmark settlement' and a 'major victory' for the state.
The settlement divides the $700 million equally between Bristol Myers Squibb and Sanofi, with the funds to be paid by wire transfer by June 9, the attorney general's office said.
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Winnipeg Free Press
42 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
South Korea's Lee must navigate the ‘Trump risk' at key summits in Japan and US
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea's President Lee Jae Myung faces a pivotal foreign policy test barely two months after taking office, with back-to-back summits in Tokyo and Washington that reflect the wider struggle of U.S. allies to navigate Donald Trump's unilateral push to redefine postwar orders on trade, security and alliances. The meetings come after Seoul and Tokyo reached trade deals with Washington that spared them from the Trump administration's highest tariffs, but only after pledging hundreds of billions of dollars in new U.S. investments. Trump's transactional approach with long-standing allies extends beyond trade to security and has fueled fears in South Korea that he will demand higher payments to support the U.S. troop presence in the country, even as he possibly seeks to scale back America's military footprint there to focus on China. The looming concerns about a U.S. retreat in leadership and security commitments come as South Korea and Japan confront growing cooperation between their nuclear-armed adversaries, North Korea and Russia, partners in the war in Ukraine and in efforts to break isolation and evade sanctions. Here is what is at stake for the Asian allies of the U.S. as they deal with an America-first president who's more unyielding than his predecessors: Asian allies pulled closer by Trump A day after confirming his Aug. 25 summit with Trump, Lee's office announced he will visit Japan on Aug. 23-24 to meet Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, a rare diplomatic setup that underscores how Trump is drawing closer two often-feuding neighbors with deep-rooted historical grievances. The meeting on Saturday in Tokyo of Lee and Ishiba — who last met on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in June — is largely about projecting leverage as the countries seek to coordinate their response to Trump, said Choi Eunmi, an analyst at South Korea's Asan Institute for Policy Studies. 'There is now the Trump risk,' Choi said. 'There's especially a lot of uncertainty in the business sector, so they might discuss ways to ease that uncertainty … not necessarily in joint efforts to confront Trump, but within the framework of trilateral cooperation.' Yukiko Fukagawa, a professor at Japan's Waseda University, said Lee's visit to Tokyo will also be seen positively in Washington, long frustrated by its Asian allies' persistent disputes over Japan's colonial rule of Korea before the end of World War II, and the way these tensions hindered three-way security collaborations. 'Because they have to deal with increasingly challenging mutual counterparts, such as China and America, both Japan and South Korea are under pressure to set aside minor differences to cooperate on larger objectives,' Fukagawa said. Yoshimasa Hayash, Japan's chief cabinet secretary, said Lee's visit will help promote the 'stable development' of bilateral ties as their countries work together on international challenges by utilizing the 'shuttle diplomacy' of regular summits. Lee and Ishiba could discuss restarting long-stalled free trade talks and South Korea's potential entry into the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, or CPTPP, a 12-member Asia-Pacific trade pact that Ishiba has pushed to expand amid tensions over U.S. tariffs. Ishiba, who has met Trump twice in person — at the White House in February and at the G7 in Canada — could also offer Lee tips ahead of his summit in Washington. Seoul and Tokyo clearly share many crucial interests in the face of Trump's efforts to reset global trade and U.S. security commitments. They are both under pressure from Washington to pay more for the tens of thousands of American troops stationed in their countries and also to increase their own defense spending. Their vital automobile and technology industries are vulnerable to Trump's tariff hikes. They navigate a tricky balance between the U.S. and its main rival, China, a growing regional threat that is also the largest trade partner for Seoul and Tokyo. They are alarmed by North Korea's accelerating nuclear program and its deepening alignment with Russia, which could complicate future diplomatic efforts after a long stalemate in U.S.-led denuclearization talks. It makes more sense for South Korea and Japan to work with the Trump administration under a trilateral framework rather than engage Washington separately, especially given how Trump mixes security and economic demands, said Ban Kil-joo, a professor at South Korea's National Diplomatic Academy. For example, the countries could propose a trilateral scheme to support Trump's push to expand natural gas and other energy production in Alaska, rather than negotiating potential investments bilaterally, he said. 'Beyond the drilling project itself, they would need to address security, including protecting maritime routes for the LNG shipments, and that responsibility could count toward defense cost-sharing or higher defense spending,' which Trump demands, Ban said. Modernizing the military alliance Lee's meeting with Trump could include talks to flesh out the details of South Korea's $350 million investment fund for U.S. industries, centered on cooperation in shipbuilding, a sector Trump has highlighted in relation to South Korea. A more crucial topic for the leaders could be the future of their decades-long military alliance, a legacy of the brutal 1950-53 Korean War. The U.S., which keeps about 30,000 troops in South Korea to deter North Korea, has long urged Seoul to accept greater flexibility to use them for missions beyond the Korean Peninsula – a demand that has intensified under Trump. Comments by senior U.S. government and military officials suggest that, in addition to pressing South Korea to pay more for hosting American forces, the Trump administration could seek to reshape U.S. Forces Korea as part of a broader military focus on ensuring capability to respond to a conflict with China over Taiwan. That shift would mean conventionally armed South Korea taking on more of the burden against the North, while the U.S. turns its focus to China. This could affect the size and role of U.S. Forces Korea, leaving Seoul with fewer benefits but higher costs and risks at a time when the North Korean nuclear threat is growing, experts say. South Korean lawmakers have also expressed fears that Washington could ask for Seoul's commitment to intervene if a conflict breaks out in the Taiwan Strait, a tricky prospect given South Korea's reliance on China for trade and Beijing's role in dealing with North Korea. South Korea should enter the Trump summit with a clear stance on its role in regional security, Ban said, possibly supporting U.S. efforts to maintain Indo-Pacific stability and opposing changes to the status quo, but without explicitly naming China as an adversary. While potentially accepting a more flexible role for U.S. Forces Korea, South Korea should also seek U.S. commitments to ensure deterrence and readiness against North Korea aren't compromised. American troop deployments off the peninsula could be offset by increased airpower or the arrival of strategic assets like bombers, helping prevent any miscalculation by the North, Ban said. __ AP writer Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo contributed.
CTV News
2 hours ago
- CTV News
Brazil's police accuse Bolsonaro of receiving US$5 million over 1 year, suspect money laundering
Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro, temporarily allowed out of house arrest for medical exams, leaves a hospital in Brasília, Brazil, Saturday, Aug. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres) BRASILIA, Brazil — Brazilian federal police accuse former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro of receiving large sums of money without apparent justification between March of 2023 and February of 2024, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press on Thursday, potentially adding to the embattled former leader's legal woes. Investigators say Brazil's financial watchdog suspects it has a case of money laundering involving Bolsonaro, who in early September will face the verdict and sentencing phase of his trial over an alleged coup plot. The former president could face another trial if the attorney general decides to charge him on accusations of obstruction of justice. Bolsonaro did not immediately comment on the latest accusation but in the past has claimed he is being persecuted politically by the government of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Brazil's President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva gestures upon arriving at an event on the economy at the Planalto presidential palace in Brasilia, Brazil, Monday, July 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres) Brazil's President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva gestures upon arriving at an event on the economy at the Planalto presidential palace in Brasilia, Brazil, Monday, July 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres) New documents add to legal woes The new documents added to a 170-page long obstruction-of-justice investigation allege Bolsonaro received more than 30 million Brazilian reais (US$5 million), most of it without apparent justification, along with debits of almost the same amount during that period. He was president from Jan. 1, 2019 to Dec. 31, 2022. The AP had access to the documents, which were sent to the country's Supreme Court. Much of the information of the financial watchdog comes from state-run bank Banco do Brasil. Almost 20 million reais (US$3.48 million) allegedly came from more than 1.2 million direct transactions called PIX. Bolsonaro spent a similar amount on investments during the period. The documents also showed that the former president spent money on wire transfers, payment of deposit slips, withdrawals and exchange operations. Brazil's federal police say in the new documents that Bolsonaro and his son Eduardo used 'several maneuvers to dissimulate the origin and destination of financial resources, with the aim of financing and supporting activities of illegal nature of the lawmaker (Eduardo Bolsonaro) living abroad.' Earlier, Bolsonaro's lawyers said they were surprised by the federal police's decision to formally accuse him of obstruction of justice. Eduardo Bolsonaro Eduardo Bolsonaro speaks during the opening of the International Seminar Challenges to National Defense and the role of the Armed Forces, in the Foreign Relations Committee of the Chamber of Deputies, in Brasilia, Brazil, Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2019. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres) Bolsonaro considered asylum in Argentina The federal police investigation revealed on Wednesday that Bolsonaro considered seeking political asylum in Argentina last year and that he continued to communicate with allies in recent weeks despite precautionary measures that now force him to be under house arrest. Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who oversees the case, told Bolsonaro's lawyers late on Wednesday that they had 48 hours to explain why the former president was not complying with measures established for his house arrest order. Bolsonaro's lawyers denied any wrongdoing in that case. 'There was never noncompliance with any precautionary measure previously imposed,' the lawyers said in a statement, in which they added they will clarify Bolsonaro's recent actions to de Moraes in a timely fashion. Also on Thursday, one of Bolsonaro's lawyers said in a TV interview that the former president never seriously considered seeking political asylum in Argentina. Paulo Cunha Bueno told TV GloboNews that Bolsonaro received 'every kind of suggestion' as the investigations on him went forward. 'Someone sent him that asylum request in February of 2024. He could have gone, but he did not. He didn't want it and he was neither in house arrest nor in ankle monitoring. He had every condition to flee and he did not,' Cunha said. Bolsonaro claimed in a 33-page document to Milei he was being politically persecuted in Brazil, documents obtained by federal police show. Both are staunch supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump, who has recently repeated some of the former president's claims in his decision to impose 50 per cent tariffs on Brazilian exports. Bolsonaro had his passport seized by Brazil's Supreme Court in on Feb. 8, 2024. He has repeatedly sought to get it back, including prior to Trump's inauguration earlier this year. De Moraes rejected all requests as the former president is seen as a flight risk. Manuel Adorni, spokesperson for Milei, said the Argentine government hasn't received anything yet. A verdict and sentence in the coup trial will come from a Supreme Court panel of five justices. They are scheduled to announce their rulings between Sept. 2 and 12. The new findings will not be part of that decision. ___ Mauricio Savarese, The Associated Press
Toronto Star
3 hours ago
- Toronto Star
Mark Carney and Donald Trump hold first official call in two months
Prime Minister Mark Carney, listens as President Donald Trump speaks during a group photo at the G7 Summit on June 16, 2025, in Kananaskis, Alta. Mark Schiefelbein AP Carney has been peppered with attacks from Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre about his handling of the trade crisis, with Poilievre, fresh off a Monday byelection win, slamming the prime minister on Wednesday for his campaign assurances that he was the leader best positioned to wrangle a win out of Trump. 'Mr. Carney, in spite of his great promises of being able to manage Trump, is losing tariff wars with China, with the U.S. and has made no progress in opening other markets abroad,' Poilievre said at a news conference in Surrey, B.C. Yet Carney received support from another staunch conservative on Thursday, with Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe urging a collaborative approach as Canada fends off trade pressures from not only the U.S., but also China's latest targeting of Canadian canola. 'We do need to work together. And this would be new, for this media gallery to have me standing in front of them saying that I am hoping for every success for a Liberal prime minister in this conversation,' Moe told reporters in Saskatoon. The Saskatchewan premier had just convened a meeting with his own front bench, federal Agriculture Minister Heath MacDonald and his parliamentary secretary Kody Blois, and a range of industry groups and exporters. Last week, China slapped a preliminary duty of 75.8 per cent on Canadian canola seed, after Beijing initiated an anti-dumping investigation into Canadian canola last year following the federal government's decision to impose 100 per cent tariffs on imports of Chinese electric vehicles. Earlier this year, China imposed a 100-per-cent tariff on Canadian canola oil and canola meal. The Canola Council of Canada, which attended Thursday's meeting, says the combination of those actions means the Chinese market is now 'effectively closed' to the Canadian canola industry. Moe said Canada's primary goal is to 'protect the market share and the market access that we have into those significant markets, namely the United States of America, of which we are experiencing much uncertainty on a number of fronts, including agriculture products, as well as China, where we have seen first retaliatory tariffs on oil and meal … and more recently, the allegations of anti-dumping.' Moe, who is preparing to visit China in the coming weeks, said it is up to Carney and Chinese President Xi Jinping to resolve the dispute. Blois, speaking alongside the Saskatchewan premier, said Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand is also focusing on identifying other markets for Canadian canola. 'We're cognizant of the importance of the market, and at the same time, I think recognizing that we are in a different world,' Blois said. Anand spent Thursday in Washington with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, though the minister's office said the duo did not discuss Canada-U.S. trade because those matters fall under the purview of her cabinet colleague Dominic LeBlanc. A readout from Rubio's office said he and his Canadian counterpart discussed Haiti's security, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, the Russia-Ukraine war, and 'mechanisms to strengthen our hemisphere's response to China's coercive activity.'
