I have just read an interesting article on www.firstwordpluss.com that was looking at the deals branded drug manufactures reach with generic providers when they settle Patent disputes, and how these deal prevent generic competition and keep drug prices high. The US Federal Trade Commission is looking a ways to ban such activities. For my money this will create two things 1) an increase in competition, 2) an increase in long and costly court cases. Its an interesting development that could have wide ranging impact, the whole drug market in the USA is undergoing some seismic shifts and this is just another example. two recent article in this blog have been pointing at it “drugmakers reach deal” and “unprecidented barriers to evolution“.
This is the interesting element of the article ” An analysis by the US Federal Trade Commission indicated that a ban on patent settlements between brand and generic drug-makers would reduce spending on prescription drugs by $3.5 billion each year. The elimination of these deals, in which drug manufacturers pay potential competitors to delay the launch of generic products, would serve “as a way to control prescription drug costs, restore the benefits of generic competition, and help pay for healthcare reform,” the FTC stated on Tuesday…..the study results demonstrated that settlements involving payments to generic drug-makers added 17 months on average to the time a generic product took to reach market, compared to cases where there were negotiations about timing but no payments.”
If you would like more detail in this area please get in touch with Damien Bové damien.bove@idaconsultants.com
Damien Bové works as a drug development consultant (pharmaceutical or biotechnology) and regulatory consultant, we work with our clients to define a drug development target, define a drug development strategy, define a regulatory strategy or define a commercial strategy. Our clients are generally raising funds or looking to license out their technology and we help them achieve it. If you want to know more don’t hesitate to get in touch.
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