Welcome to the FDB/Medi-Span
AWP Settlement Website

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IF YOU ARE: (A) A CONSUMER WHO PAID FOR ALL OR PART OF PRESCRIPTION DRUGS OR (B) A THIRD-PARTY PAYOR THAT MADE REIMBURSEMENTS FOR THE COST OF PRESCRIPTION DRUGS BASED IN ANY PART ON PRICE INFORMATION REPORTED BY FIRST DATABANK OR MEDI-SPAN, THIS MAY AFFECT YOUR RIGHTS.

The United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts entered an order giving preliminary approval of Settlements in New England Carpenters Health Benefits Fund, et al. v. First DataBank, Inc., et al. No. 1:05-CV-11148-PBS and D. C. 37 Health & Security Plan v. Medi-Span, No. 07-cv-10988-PBS.

On January 23, 2008, the Court issued an order denying approval to the settlement because the judge had some concerns which the parties will attempt to resolve. Another Fairness Hearing has not been scheduled at this time

Description of the Lawsuit

First DataBank, Inc. (“FDB”) and Medi-Span are Defendants that publish certain data related to the prices of prescription drugs in their printed and electronic databases. FDB and Medi-Span are not, nor have they ever been, a manufacturer, supplier, wholesaler, distributor or seller of prescription drugs.FDB and Medi-Span are publishers of information.

The FDB lawsuit alleges such legal theories as negligent representation, conspiracy, fraud and violations of consumer protection statutes. The Medi-Span lawsuit alleges that Medi-Span also negligently published inflated prescription drug prices. The Medi-Span lawsuit alleges such legal theories as negligent misrepresentation.

FDB and Medi-Span have denied any wrongdoing or liability.

“Class Member” Description

The proposed “Class” includes: Consumers and Third-Party Payors.

Consumer Plaintiffs are individuals who paid for all or part of certain prescription drugs based on data published by FDB or Medi-Span. You must have made these purchases: based on FDB pricing between January 1, 2000 and the date of Final Court Approval of the FDB Settlement and/or. purchases based on Medi-Span published prices between December 19, 2001 and the date of Final Court Approval of the Medi-Span Settlement. (Click on the appropriate link on the right for a list of prescription drugs reported by FDB and a list of prescription drugs reported by Medi-Span.)

Third-Party Payor Plaintiffs are entities that reimbursed for prescription drugs based on the BBAWP published by FDB or the AWP published by Medi-Span. A TPP is an entity that is:

1. A party to a contract, issuer of a policy, or sponsor of a plan, and
2. At risk, under such contract, policy, or plan, to pay or reimburse all or part of the cost of prescription drugs dispensed to covered natural persons.

TPPs include insurance companies, union health and welfare benefit plans and self-insured employers. (For a more comprehensive definition of TPPs, refer to the Settlement Agreements.)

Not included in the “Class” are the Defendants (along with their parents, subsidiaries, or affiliates), all governmental entities, those entities that own or operate businesses referred to commonly as pharmacy benefit managers (“PBMs”) and any consumer who made flat co-payments for prescription drugs.

Description of the Settlements

The Settlements do not provide cash payments by FDB or Medi-Span. Rather, Class Members get what is called “injunctive relief.” This means that instead of paying money damages, the companies will agree to change what they are doing to benefit the Settlement Classes.

Substantial benefits will be provided to the Classes because FDB and Medi-Span will, among other things, change the way they publish pricing information for a large number of prescription drugs. This will result in a reduction in the prices for these prescription drugs.

Class Counsel estimates that this reduction may save well over a billion dollars in future prescription drug costs for consumers, insurance providers and Third-Party Payors in a single 12-month period.

To remain a “Class Member”, you need not do anything at this time

As a Class Member, you will be bound by all orders and judgments of the Court.

To Exclude yourself from the “Class”

If you are a “Class Member” and want to be excluded from the Class, you must mail a signed letter asking to be excluded to: FDB/Medi-Span Settlement Administrator, c/o Complete Claim Solutions, LLC, P.O. Box 24730, West Palm Beach, FL 33416. Include your name, the name of the person or entity seeking exclusion, an address and telephone number. All exclusion requests must be postmarked no later than December 21, 2007.

Final Approval Hearings have not been scheduled.

The Final Approval Hearings will be held to:

1. determine whether the Settlements are fair, reasonable and adequate and in the best interests of the Class, whether it should be approved by the Court, and whether judgment should be entered;
2. consider the application of Class Counsel for an award of attorneys’ fees and expenses; and
3. consider any other issues the Court thinks necessary.

To object to the Settlement

If you are a Class Member as defined above, and you have not requested exclusion from of the Class, you may still object to the fairness, reasonableness or adequacy of the Settlement or the applications for litigation expenses.

To object, you (or your lawyer if you have one) must file a written statement with the Clerk of the Court, John Joseph Moakley U.S. Courthouse, 1 Courthouse Way, Suite 2300, Boston, Massachusetts 02210, postmarked no later than December 21, 2007. Follow the instructions on page 6 of the Notice in the section entitled, “Commenting on the Settlements”.

For further information, including the Summary Notice, Court documents and a list of the frequently asked questions, click on the links to the left.