South Dakota to get $419K from settlement involving allegations of illegal marketing of a drug

Attorney General Marty Jackley says South Dakota will receive $419,000 from a multistate settlement with Pfizer Inc.

Pfizer has agreed to pay $35 million to resolve allegations by 42 states that a subsidiary illegally marketed an organ transplant drug for unapproved uses.

Jackley says the misleading claims put consumers' health at risk.

Authorities say Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, which Pfizer bought in 2009, trained sales representatives to encourage doctors to prescribe Rapamune for uses other than preventing rejection of transplanted kidneys.

Rapamune was approved in 1999 for use in kidney transplant patients. It's illegal to promote drugs for uses not cleared by the Food and Drug Administration.

Pfizer says the alleged activity occurred before it acquired Wyeth. The company didn't admit any wrongdoing or liability as part of the settlement.