Glaxo to pay $750M in pill case

BOSTON - Federal prosecutors in Massachusetts say British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline will pay $750 million to settle allegations that its subsidiary manufactured and sold adulterated drugs, including the popular antidepressant Paxil.

U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz announced today that Glaxo has agreed to settle civil and criminal charges related to the subsidiary in Puerto Rico.

Ortiz said the London-based company will pay $150 million in criminal fines and $600 million in civil penalties.

In 2005, GlaxoSmithKline, which has major operations in Philadelphia, agreed to fix deficiencies at its now-closed plant in Cidra, Puerto Rico, that allowed tablets of Paxil to split apart before reaching consumers.

A call to GlaxoSmithKline's U.S. offices requesting comment was not immediately returned.