By Mike Scarcella
WASHINGTON, Aug 6 (Reuters) – Teva Pharmaceuticals has asked a U.S. judge to prevent insurer Humana from telling jurors it is an Israeli company at a major drug price-fixing trial, arguing that strong public views over the Gaza war could prejudice proceedings and affect its ability to receive a fair hearing.
In a filing in a federal court in Philadelphia on Wednesday, Tel Aviv-based Teva said its national origins have no bearing on whether it took part in an alleged conspiracy to inflate generic drug prices, the central claim in the litigation.
Teva, one of Israel’s largest companies, is set to be one of several drug makers to face the first trial in the long-running case. The trial is scheduled to begin on September 15 and end by late October.
The filing underscored how far-reaching tensions over the war in Gaza have become in the United States, including potentially complicating a company’s ability to defend itself before randomly selected jurors.
Israel’s military assault on the Gaza Strip, triggered by Hamas’ October 2023 attack on Israel, has become a divisive issue in U.S. politics.
“In the period of almost three years since the start of the Gaza War, anything connected with Israel has been subject to the highest levels of controversy, with emotions running high,” Teva said in its filing.
In a statement, it said its corporate origin was irrelevant to the case and that “references to a foreign parent company are potentially prejudicial.” Teva’s U.S.-based subsidiary is a defendant in the lawsuit.
Teva has denied Humana’s allegations that it conspired with other drug makers to keep the prices of some drugs artificially high. The drugs include the muscle relaxant baclofen and blood pressure medication propranolol.
Louisville, Kentucky-based Humana declined to comment.
Companies and other parties in lawsuits routinely ask judges to limit what jurors can hear during trials, arguing that some evidence could unfairly sway a jury.
Teva pointed to a recent opinion poll that said it found 60% of Americans have a negative view of Israel. The drug maker also cited U.S. college campus protests over Israel and acts of violence against individuals and institutions deemed affiliated with the country.
Humana in a separate filing urged the court to bar the drug company defendants from introducing “inflammatory argument or evidence regarding health insurance companies generally,” including any evidence of denied claims.
Its filing cited the 2024 shooting death of UnitedHealthcare chief executive Brian Thompson. The alleged shooter in that case allegedly wrote the word “deny” on a bullet casing.
(Reporting by Mike Scarcella; Editing by David Bario and Howard Goller)
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