Oregon, Washington, Idaho Part Of Multi-State Pharmaceutical Settlement

Oregon, Washington and Idaho are part of a $90 million, 38 state settlement announced Thursday with pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline. The lawsuit claims the drug company downplayed the cardiovascular risks of the diabetes drug Avandia, which has been linked to an increased risk of heart attacks.

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Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum has announced a third major pharmaceutical settlement since she took office.

It's the third major pharmaceutical settlement announced by Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum since she took office in June. Each case began under her predecessor, John Kroger.

But Justice Department spokesman, Jeff Manning, says the Attorney General will continue going after drug companies.

"When you're talking about a giant pharmaceutical company misrepresenting the safety aspects of a widely-marketed drug, that is right in the wheelhouse of the Department of Justice."

As one of the lead plaintiffs, Oregon gets a larger share of the settlement. Manning says the state has recovered more than $18 million from pharmaceutical companies in the past two years.

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