Seven U.S. senators have requested that the Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission review the proposed acquisition of Allergan by Canada-based Valeant, concerned the deal could increase consumer pricing and restrict the development of new drugs.
Last week, Valeant took its bid for Allergan to the shareholders after Allegan's board unanimously rejected Valeant's latest offer of about $53 billion.
Senators are now urging federal agencies to investigate whether the merger would have a negative effect on U.S. consumers. As reported by the LA Times, the senator's stated, "We are concerned about a growing trend in the pharmaceutical industry whereby companies make acquisitions, eliminate drug pipelines, slash R&D budgets and arbitrage location headquarters in order to lower effective tax rates."
Read the LA Times article