The Sixth Circuit recently dealt another blow to relators seeking damages under the False Claims Act (FCA) based on allegations of off-label promotion. In a 2-1 decision, the court, in United States ex rel. Ibanez v. Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., affirmed the district court’s dismissal of …
Paul Simon sang about the 50 ways to leave your lover but there are more ways to go to jail if you are regulated by FDA. Congress has increased the regulatory powers of FDA significantly in the past 20 years but largely unnoticed has been …
It is the False Claims Act (FCA) case that wouldn’t die. The complaint in United States ex rel. King v. Solvay Pharmaceuticals, Inc. was originally filed in 2006 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas. Through a series of partial summary …
On August 18, 2017, President Trump signed into law the Food and Drug Administration Reauthorization Act of 2017 (“FDARA”). In addition to reauthorizing and amending several drug and medical device provisions that were scheduled to sunset, FDARA also makes several changes to the law concerning …
In a settlement noteworthy to any company with a drug subject to a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (“REMS”), on September 5, 2017, the U.S. announced a multi-million dollar civil settlement with Novo Nordisk for an alleged violation of REMS requirements for its drug Victoza …
Since the Supreme Court issued its False Claims Act (“FCA”) ruling in Universal Health Services, Inc. v. U.S. ex rel. Escobar, 136 S. Ct. 1989 (2016) courts have grappled with Escobar’s concept of FCA “materiality.” Materiality was described by the Supreme Court as a “rigorous” …
In an advisory opinion posted on August 25, 2017, the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services (“OIG”) determined that enforcement action would not be taken against a drug manufacturer’s proposal to replace products that require specialized handling that …
According to a European Medicines Agency (EMA) press release issued on August 23, 2017, the FDA, the European Commission (EC), and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) recently signed a new confidentiality commitment that allows the FDA to share non-public and commercially confidential information, including trade …
Just last month, we blogged about what we believe to be the first Consent Decree signed by the government and an Outsourcing Facility, shutting down operations under judicial order until certain rigorous conditions are met. Now, comes the second. Isomeric Pharmacy Solutions, LLC and three affiliated individuals …
Developing jurisprudence on FCA qui tam (whistleblower) cases, in addition to the important False Claims Act settlement discussed in a recent FDA Law Blog post (here), the First Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision on July 26 in a case brought against DePuy Orthopaedics, Inc., alleging false …
The Department of Justice announced on July 24, 2017, that Celgene agreed, without admitting liability, to pay a total of $280 million to settle a qui tam case relating to two of its drug products, Thalomid® and Revlimid®. The qui tam complaint filed in the …
In the almost four years since passage of Title I of the Drug Quality Security Act, (the Compounding Quality Act), FDA has inspected hundreds of pharmacies, issued numerous Form 483s and warning letters, and has requested both voluntary recalls and cessation of non-sterile and sterile …
Courts continue to wrangle over last year’s Supreme Court decision in United Health Services v. United States ex rel. Escobar, 136 S. Ct. 1989 (2016), and as reported here and here, there appeared to be an emerging trend of courts narrowing the types of False …
Our postings on the FDC Act typically focus on more straightforward applications of FDA’s regulation of the food and drug world. Drug development, patent dances, off-label promotion prosecutions, newly defined menu labeling—these are some of the many issues we associate with FDA’s activities. But since the …
On June 5th, 2017, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its opinion in Kokesh v. Securities and Exchange Commission. The Court unanimously reversed the Tenth Circuit’s decision below, and ruled that a five-year statute of limitations for the enforcement of “any civil fine, penalty, or forfeiture” …
