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Commitments, Contingent Liabilities and Litigation
6 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2016
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Commitments, Contingent Liabilities and Litigation
7. Commitments, Contingent Liabilities and Litigation
Commitments
Generic Sourcing Venture with CVS Health Corporation ("CVS Health")
In July 2014, we established Red Oak Sourcing, LLC ("Red Oak Sourcing"), a U.S.-based generic pharmaceutical sourcing venture with CVS Health for an initial term of 10 years. Red Oak Sourcing negotiates generic pharmaceutical supply contracts on behalf of both companies. Due to the achievement of predetermined milestones, we are required to make quarterly payments of $45.6 million to CVS Health for the remainder of the initial term.
Legal Proceedings
We become involved from time to time in disputes, litigation, and regulatory matters.
We may be named from time to time in qui tam actions, which are initiated by private third parties purporting to act on behalf of federal or state governments and which allege that false claims have been submitted or have been caused to be submitted for payment by the government. After a private party has filed a qui tam action, the government must investigate the private party's claim and determine whether to intervene in and take control over the litigation. These actions may remain under seal while the government makes this determination. If the government declines to intervene, the private party may nonetheless continue to pursue the litigation on his or her own on behalf of the government.
From time to time, we become aware through employees or other parties of possible compliance matters that we investigate internally, such as complaints or concerns relating to accounting, internal accounting controls, financial reporting, auditing, or other ethical matters or relating to compliance with laws such as healthcare fraud and abuse, anti-corruption, or anti-bribery laws. In addition, from time to time, we receive subpoenas or requests for information from various government agencies relating to our business or to the business of a customer, supplier, or other industry participant. While we do not believe that the outcomes of any current internal investigation or third-party subpoena or request for information will be material to our financial statements, they could lead to the assertion of claims or the commencement of legal proceedings against us or result in sanctions.
From time to time, we may determine that products we manufacture or market do not meet our specifications, regulatory requirements, or published standards. When we or a regulatory agency identify a quality or regulatory issue, we investigate and take appropriate corrective action. Such actions can lead to product recalls, costs to repair or replace affected products, temporary interruptions in product sales, action by regulators, and product liability claims and lawsuits, including class actions.
We accrue for contingencies related to disputes, litigation, and regulatory matters if it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated. Because these matters are inherently unpredictable and unfavorable developments or resolutions can occur, assessing contingencies is highly subjective and requires judgments about future events. We regularly review contingencies to determine whether our accruals and related disclosures are adequate. The amount of ultimate loss may differ from these estimates.
We recognize income from the favorable outcome of litigation when we receive the associated cash or assets.
Except as otherwise stated below, we recognize estimated loss contingencies for litigation and regulatory matters and income from favorable resolution of litigation in litigation (recoveries)/charges, net in our condensed consolidated statements of earnings.
DEA Investigation and Related Matters
In February 2012, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (the "DEA") issued an order to show cause and immediate suspension of our Lakeland, Florida distribution center's registration to distribute controlled substances, asserting that we failed to maintain required controls against the diversion of controlled substances. In May 2012, we entered into a settlement agreement with the DEA that resolved the administrative aspects of the DEA's action but did not resolve potential liability for civil penalties in Florida or elsewhere for the conduct covered by the settlement agreement. In December 2016, we entered into settlement agreements with the Department of Justice (the “DOJ”) that resolved the civil penalties related to this and other controlled substance matters with respect to Cardinal Health, Inc. and to Kinray, LLC, which we acquired in 2010. Under these settlements, we agreed to pay $44 million to the DOJ, and the DOJ, including the DEA and the U.S. Attorneys' Offices for all 94 districts, agreed to take no further administrative or civil action on these matters.
State of West Virginia vs. Cardinal Health, Inc.
In January 2017, we agreed, without admitting liability, to pay $20 million to the State of West Virginia to settle a lawsuit filed against us by the West Virginia Attorney General in June 2012. As previously disclosed, the West Virginia Attorney General had filed complaints in the Circuit Court of Boone County, West Virginia against a number of pharmaceutical wholesale distributors, including us, alleging, among other things, that the distributors had failed to maintain effective controls to guard against diversion of controlled substances in West Virginia, had failed to report suspicious orders of controlled substances in accordance with the West Virginia Uniform Controlled Substances Act, and were negligent in distributing controlled substances to pharmacies that serve individuals who abuse controlled substances. We recorded a $20 million accrual for the matter in the three months ended December 31, 2016.
Product Liability Lawsuits
As of January 31, 2017, we and our Cordis business have been named as defendants in 41 product liability lawsuits involving claims by approximately 350 plaintiffs that allege personal injuries associated with the use of Cordis OptEase and TrapEase inferior vena cava (IVC) filter products. These lawsuits seek a variety of remedies, including unspecified monetary damages. We are vigorously defending ourselves in these matters.
During the three months ended September 30, 2016, we recorded an accrual, most of which relates to legal defense costs, as an adjustment to pre-acquisition liabilities assumed in the Cordis acquisition. Refer to Note 2 for further information regarding this adjustment. We do not believe that reasonably possible losses in excess of this accrued amount will be material to our financial statements.