Abbott Laboratories has agreed to pay $384,999,040 to resolve federal allegations that it caused false claims to be submitted to government programs for powdered infant formula and nutritional products made at its plants in Sturgis, Michigan, and Casa Grande, Arizona, the Justice Department announced on Monday. The claims cover the period from Jan. 1, 2018, through Dec. 31, 2022.
The case matters to families because of who paid for the formula. According to the Justice Department, more than half of all infant formula bought in the United States is paid for with U.S. Department of Agriculture funds through the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, known as WIC. State Medicaid programs also cover certain infant formula.
