The drugs in question were prescribed to treat conditions such as epilepsy, heart failure, anxiety, insomnia, hypertension, diabetes, asthma, arthritis, and more. The lawsuit alleges that drugmakers colluded to undermine that competition, harming patients and the taxpayers.

Attorneys general for 45 states, plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, are alleging that nearly 20 companies that manufacture generic drugs illegally collaborated with competitors to jack up the prices for those prescription pharmaceuticals and divvy up markets to limit competition, according to a report by Business Insider.  More than a dozen of these generic drug manufacturers accused of raising prices on United States consumers in an alleged illegal price-fixing case are asking a federal court in Philadelphia to impose a gag order on investigators.