Novartis Denies Cover-Up Of $1.2M Deal With Michael Cohen
Michael Cohen Image by Gettty Images
Novartis on Friday disputed a report from Democratic senators that concluded the Swiss drugmaker misled the public about its $1.2 million contract with a former attorney for President Donald Trump.
“We disagree with the report’s conclusion that we issued a misleading public statement regarding the extent of our engagement with (Michael) Cohen,” Novartis said of the report compiled by staff of Sen. Ron Wyden, from Oregon, and other minority party lawmakers.
The report concluded the company’s relationship with Cohen was longer and more detailed than it had previously disclosed.
Among other things, the document contends that former Novartis Chief Executive Joe Jimenez had “multiple additional communications” with Cohen including e-mails and phone calls.
Novartis has previously said it hired Cohen as a consultant on health care policy and that it continued to pay him for a year despite concluding that his advice would be worthless because the agreement could only be terminated for cause.
In its statement on Friday, Novartis reiterated that its deal with Cohen was a mistake, but denied that it sought to conceal a deeper relationship.
A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.
If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
