Medicine manufacturers "pay-for-delay"

“Remember, on prescriptions, generic is a steal.” This line was once sung proudly by Sophia Petrillo, a character played by Estelle Getty on the hit show, The Golden Girls. Many people still exclaim this tune, as the prices of brand name medication continue to rise. One company believes that generics are too much of a steal, and have done everything in their power to prevent the “theft” of their product.

A lawsuit was filed against Dublin-based pharmaceutical manufacturer, Endo Health Solutions (“Endo”) by a construction workers’ health and welfare fund in Farmingdale, NY. The lawsuit alleges Endo paid over $112 million to prevent a copy of its pain medication, Opana ER, from hitting the generic market. This is the second time Endo has been sued for their “pay-for-delay” tactic. In June of this year, Rochester Drug Cooperative filed a claim against Endo, alleging that they paid the same $112 million to settle a patent dispute with Impax, a generic manufacturer. In the settlement, Impax agreed to delay the generic version of the Opana ER in return for the $112 million. In the wake of plunging share prices, shareholder strife, and the patent expiration of their top-selling drug Lidoderm, Endo has petitioned the FDA to declare the original version, as well as the generic drug, unsafe in order to have them removed from the market. This tactic was unsuccessful, as the FDA refused their request.

The generic market is big business, but has resulted in decreased business for pharmaceutical manufacturers. This is why many have resorted to delaying tactics to decrease competition from generic manufacturers. One of the biggest manufacturers of medicine, GlaxoSmithKline PLC, was recently fined $54 million, for orchestrating “pay-for-delay” deals postponing the release of a generic version of the Antidepressant Seroxat. The “pay-for-delay” strategy has been going on for years, but has just been brought to the forefront. Generic manufacturers have always been society’s saviors against overpriced name brands and a real champion for the little guy. However, with “pay-for-delay” scandals putting them in the pocket of Big Pharma, who does society have to turn to now for that “generic steal?”

Photo credit: Pascal (Not Sugar) via flickr.com cc

Sources:

http://www.fiercepharma.com/story/endo-accused-112m-payoff-opana-pay-delay-suit/2014-10-06?utm_medium=rss&utm_source=rss&utm_campaign=rsshttp://www.businessinsider.com/kyle-bass-gets-institution-for-lialda-ipr-2015-10

http://www.law360.com/articles/758706/breaking-gsk-fined-54m-over-uk-pay-for-delay-deals