Bucks County has joined municipalities across the nation in suing major insulin manufacturers and drug price negotiating companies over an alleged “illegal price-fixing scheme,” writes Jesse Bunch for The Philadelphia Inquirer.

“Manufacturers and middlemen have rigged America’s drug-pricing system, making insulin incredibly expensive for families covered by our county health plan,” said Bucks County Solicitor Amy Fitzpatrick last week.

The lawsuit claims that Bucks County, which provides health insurance to over 2,000 employees, has been forced to pay inflated prices for insulin and other diabetes medications. The companies listed as defendants include insulin manufacturers Eli Lilly and Co., Novo Nordisk, and Sanofi, as well as pharmacy benefit managers CVS Caremark, Express Scripts, and OptumRx.

Insulin and many other medications are priced at least double in the United States compared to other developed nations. According to grassroots health groups, pharmaceutical companies sometimes inflate prices by as much as 5,000 percent above what it actually costs to produce the drugs.

The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey. Fitzpatrick announced it alongside Bucks County Commissioners Bob Harvie and Diane Ellis-Marseglia and Bucks County District Attorney Jennifer Schorn.

To learn more about the lawsuit and what it could mean for the future of drug pricing in America, read the full story in The Philadelphia Inquirer.