Judge upholds 'Pharma Bro' Martin Shkreli's ban from pharmaceutical industry

Martin Shkreli's lifetime ban from the pharmaceutical industry was upheld by a federal appeals court in New York on Tuesday.

A three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Shkreli was punished appropriately for antitrust violations.

Shkreli increased the price of the antiparasitic drug Daraprim -- an anti-malaria medication often prescribed for HIV patients -- by 4,000%, from $17.50 per pill to $750 per pill in 2015.

Shkreli, a former pharmaceuticals CEO who was nicknamed "Pharma Bro" after hiking the cost of the lifesaving drug, was convicted of securities fraud and had faced a sentence of up to 20 years in prison.

In 2018, Shkreli was convicted of securities fraud and other offenses and was sentenced to seven years in prison.

At the time of his sentencing, Shkreli apologized for his "disgraceful judgment" and dispensed with his prior criticisms of the court and his conviction.

"The only person to blame for me being here is me," he said. "There is no government conspiracy to take down Martin Shkreli. I took down Martin Shkreli with my disgraceful and shameful actions."

After serving about five years, Shkreli was released from prison early in May 2022.

After the Federal Trade Commission sued him a court ordered the lifetime ban and made him repay $64 million.

Shkreli argued the lifetime ban was excessive and limited his public speech. The appellate court found the ban was a reasonable measure to protect the public from future price-fixing.

"Given Shkreli's pattern of past misconduct, the obvious likelihood of its recurrence, and the life-threatening nature of its results, we are persuaded that the district court's determination as to the proper scope of the injunction was well within its discretion," according to the opinion.

Shkreli's company, Vyera Pharmaceuticals, settled allegations it suppressed competition for Daraprim, its most valuable drug, and filed for bankruptcy last year.