BY SARAH ROSS

SALEM- Following the settlement with the pharmaceutical company Alpharma, Inc., which was accused of defrauding the Medicaid program, Attorney General John Kroger announced Wednesday that Oregon will be receiving $145,000 in the national settlement.

The agreement settles alleged steps by the company to illegally induce health care providers to prescribe a morphine sulfate drug, Kadian, to Medicaid patients.

“It is not acceptable for pharmaceutical companies to defraud the Medicaid program,” said Kroger in Wednesday’s press release.

Alpharma will be required to pay $42.5 million plus interest to participating states and the United States, including $19.2 million to Medicaid programs nationwide.

The investigation, led by South Carolina, Arkansas, Vermont, Florida, and Texas, looked into allegations that from 2000 to 2008 the company had offered training programs, research grants, and consulting forums, among other things, making or spreading false statements about the drug’s safety and effectiveness.