By Associated Press
Montgomery, AL – Attorneys were set to begin giving closing arguments in the trial of the state of Alabama's lawsuit against two prescription drug companies.
The attorneys were scheduled to begin giving closing arguments when court resumed at 9 a.m. Monday. Jurors could begin deliberations by Monday afternoon after hearing two weeks of testimony.
Attorneys for the state are seeking as much as $400 million from drug companies Novartis Pharmaceuticals and GlaxoSmithKline. The state's attorneys argued the companies committed fraud by causing the state's Medicaid program to pay too much for prescription drugs from 1991 to 2005.
Lawyers for the two firms have said they reported fair, correct prices to Medicaid and did not commit fraud.
The trial is the second on more than 70 lawsuits filed by the state against pharmaceutical companies.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)