MONTGOMERY, Ala., July 3 (Reuters) - The state of Alabama said on Thursday it would offer 69 drug companies it sued over alleged Medicaid price-fixing 30 days to reach a settlement before taking further legal action.

Attorneys have completed closing arguments in the trial of the state of Alabama's lawsuit against two prescription drug companies. The jury now has the case. An attorney for the state of Alabama has asked jurors to make two drug companies pay as much as $800 million in a lawsuit accusing the firms of fraud in Medicaid drug pricing.

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) - A state court jury on Tuesday found two major pharmaceutical companies defrauded Alabama in a long-running Medicaid drug pricing scheme and ordered the firms to pay more than $114 million in damages. The jury found that GlaxoSmithKline should pay the state $80.8 million in compensatory damages and that Novartis should pay about $33.7 million in similar damages. But it declined to order any punitive damages.

July 1 (Bloomberg) -- GlaxoSmithKline Plc and Novartis AG inflated drug prices paid by Alabama's Medicaid program and must pay the state $114.3 million in damages, a jury ruled after a two-week civil-fraud trial. After deliberating for 5 1/2 hours yesterday and today, the state jury in Montgomery, Alabama, found the drugmakers liable for misrepresentation.

An attorney seeking as much as $400 million in damages from two large pharmaceutical companies told jurors Tuesday the firms defrauded Alabama's Medicaid program with high prices for drugs for more than a decade. The trial, expected to last about two weeks, is the second to be held on more than 70 lawsuits filed by the state accusing pharmaceutical companies of overcharging Medicaid for prescription drugs. The first ended with a jury awarding the state $215 million against AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP.

Investors might find it easier to sue insurance agents and carriers, thanks to new standards from the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc., attorneys said.

The Alabama Supreme Court ruled Friday that more than one pharmaceutical company can be tried at the same time in the state's lawsuit accusing more than 70 drug companies of fraud in over­charging the state's Medicaid pro­gram.

(Bloomberg) -- GlaxoSmithKline Plc and Novartis AG must face trial together in a lawsuit in which Alabama accuses them of inflating drug prices, costing the state Medicaid program $130 million in overcharges, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled.

A federal judge ruled the Justice Department can subpoena documents and question Countrywide Financial Corp. executives under oath to determine whether the lender abused borrowers and the bankruptcy-court process.

It is recommended that policyholders contact an attorney for legal advice immediately to determine if they should opt out. If policyholders do not opt out by the June 3 deadline, they will not be able to pursue individual litigation if they feel the class action decision is not an adequate remedy or if they file a claim on the policy in the future.