• where experts go to learn about FDA
  • Sara W. Koblitz

    • Teva Gets Knocked Down, But It Gets Up Again—and Petitions SCOTUSAugust 4th, 2022

      Teva may be down, but it’s not out yet.  By now, the ongoing Teva v. GSK litigation— concerning induced infringement of patents covering the use of carvedilol in decreasing mortality caused by congestive heart failure in a patient—is well-worn territory (see our multiple posts on …

    • Everything You Wanted to Know About the Orange Book But Were Too Afraid To AskJuly 26th, 2022

      In its second Orange Book Guidance in as many days, FDA is addressing all of your burning questions about the Orange Book—and boy are we excited at the Agency’s efforts to make the Orange Book accessible for everyone!  The Guidance is a Frequently Asked Questions …

    • TE Codes 101: FDA Guidance Teaches Basics of Therapeutic Equivalence CodesJuly 24th, 2022

      The Orange Book’s Therapeutic Equivalence Codes (TE Codes) play a critical role in our drug distribution and payment system.  All states have “automatic substitution” laws that require prescriptions to be filled using a generic where available (unless otherwise ordered by the physician), and those substitutions …

    • Is FDA Going to Get A Little Help From Its Friends at the PTO?July 21st, 2022

      Drug pricing has been a hot button issue in the U.S. for decades, and patent protections have been cited as a source of “gamesmanship” allowing brand companies to keep drug prices high.  Yet, as long as FDA and FTC have been trying to address anticompetitive …

    • Here It Goes, Here It Goes, Here It Goes Again: The Build Back Better Act (Redux)July 14th, 2022

      The Build Back Better Act—the food and drug law implications of which we discussed last year—has popped up again in Congress, and it is just as dense as ever.  With 190 pages dedicated to prescription drug pricing reform, the program is ambitious…and complicated. As we explained …

    • ‘Til I Hear It From Congress: FDASLA to Direct Publication of Final OTC Hearing Aid RulesJune 22nd, 2022

      There is a lot to unpack in the 430 pages of FDASLA, which means that some provisions are falling a little under the radar.  One of those provisions is an unusual one in which Congress directs FDA to issue final rules concerning Over-the-Counter hearing aids.  …

    • Not So Retro: FDA Says IRTNMTA Cannot Be Retroactively AppliedJune 14th, 2022

      Market exclusivities—patent or otherwise—are a critical part of the Hatch-Waxman compromise, intended to encourage continued innovation in spite of the introduction of generic competition.  Even a month of market exclusivity is financially lucrative enough to fight for, so it is no surprise that a company …

    • FDA Can’t Always Get What It Wants…So It Asks CongressJune 7th, 2022

      As the User Fee Acts move through Congress, it has been clear that FDA is using them as a vehicle to legislatively overturn some big court losses over the last few years.  As faithful readers of our blog know, FDA’s broad interpretations of its governing …

    • Prescription Drug User Fees Ex-PAND-ed to PANDAs (PANDA-monium Part II)June 2nd, 2022

      A little less than a year ago, it was PANDA-monium at FDA when the Agency created a new category of drug applications called the PANDA—or the Pre-Hatch-Waxman Abbreviated New Drug Application—which referred to abbreviated drug applications submitted and approved prior to the enactment of the …

    • Higher and Higher (Into the Fire): Jacobus Appeals Orphan Drug Case to SCOTUSApril 21st, 2022

      Our last post on the Eleventh Circuit’s September 2021 decision in Catalyst v. Becerra got a lot of attention.  We’d like to think that this is because the scope of orphan drug exclusivity is as fascinating to everyone as it is to us, but if …

    • Proposed Legislation Would Reverse Genus DecisionsMarch 30th, 2022

      Legislation has been proposed in Congress that would require FDA to regulate all contrast agents as drugs even though two courts determined that doing so clearly contradicts the plain language of the Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act (“FDC Act”).  Unless amended, the proposed legislation …

    • Genus Decision Continues to Ripple Through IndustryMarch 29th, 2022

      It’s not often that FDA issues an “Immediately in Effect Guidance,” but it’s not often that a case like Genus v. FDA comes along and upends twenty years of FDA practice.  Almost a year after the D.C. Circuit held that products that simultaneously meet both …

    • Fake News? Fantastic Claims and Where to Find Them (or Where FDA Will)March 4th, 2022

      With our second OPDP enforcement letter of 2022, FDA is making one thing clear: OPDP will find your promotional content—even when it may not look like promotional content.  While it’s not mind-blowing that OPDP would find a series of videos while scrolling Instagram (particularly when …

    • Condition Critical: Court Interprets Orphan Drug Exclusivity BroadlyFebruary 17th, 2022

      Because a drug is designated an “Orphan” if it is intended to treat a “rare condition,” the condition itself always has been integral to Orphan Drug Exclusivity.  Indeed, the condition for which the product is intended to treat dictates the prevalence calculation by which FDA …

    • But Is It Insta-Worthy? OPDP’s First Letter of 2022February 7th, 2022

      Well, OPDP is kicking off 2022 in a big way – taking on an Eli Lilly Instagram post with video for Trulicity.  This is the second time in a little over a month that Eli Lilly has found itself caught in OPDP’s cross-hairs.  On the …