Drug companies to pay Hawaii $700 million to settle Plavix blood thinner lawsuit

Pharmaceutical companies have agreed to pay Hawaii $700 million to settle its lawsuit over the efficacy and safety of the blood thinner Plavix, the state attorney general's office announced Friday. A court ruling last year ordered Bristol Myers Squibb Company and three U.S.-based subsidiaries of French pharmaceutical company Sanofi to pay a combined $916 million. “Plavix has helped millions of people with cardiovascular disease around the world for nearly 30 years and it continues to be endorsed as a first-line therapy by leading treatment guidelines across the globe,” the statement added.