Advertisement

If you have an ACS member number, please enter it here so we can link this account to your membership. (optional)

ACS values your privacy. By submitting your information, you are gaining access to C&EN and subscribing to our weekly newsletter. We use the information you provide to make your reading experience better, and we will never sell your data to third party members.

ENJOY UNLIMITED ACCES TO C&EN

Pharmaceuticals

FTC Seeks Ban On Pay-For-Delay Deals

by Glenn Hess
January 18, 2010 | A version of this story appeared in Volume 88, Issue 3

[+]Enlarge
Credit: Shutterstock
Credit: Shutterstock

Patent dispute settlements in which brand-name pharmaceutical companies pay generics competitors to delay entry into the market are costing consumers $3.5 billion per year, the Federal Trade Commission said last week. Eliminating these "anticompetitive" pay-for-delay deals is one of the commission's highest priorities, FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz says. He wants Congress to include a provision in the final health care reform legislation that would block generic-delaying settlements. Since 2005, the number of pay-for-delay deals has increased following a number of court decisions that have "misapplied the antitrust law" and upheld the agreements, according to the FTC analysis. "Most of these agreements are still in effect. They currently protect at least $20 billion in sales of brand-name pharmaceuticals from generic competition," the report says. The drug industry argues that most compensation agreements are pro-consumer because they still allow generic manufacturers to introduce cheaper drugs before the patents expire on their brand counterparts. Similar questions are now being raised in Europe (see page 6).

Article:

This article has been sent to the following recipient:

0 /1 FREE ARTICLES LEFT THIS MONTH Remaining
Chemistry matters. Join us to get the news you need.