2017 is already shaping up to be a big year in court for Amgen and the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (“BPCIA”). As regular readers know, Amgen’s challenge to Sandoz’s refusal to participate in the patent dance after filing of an aBLA relying on …
On January 18, 2017, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services along with 15 other federal agencies issued the Final Rule to revise the Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects, known as the “Common Rule.” This 1991 set of regulations created a …
Questions about the scope of 3-year exclusivity granted by FDA for an abuse-deterrent opioid have been on the rise over the past few years. Initially, FDA was able to punt on some decisions, either because companies exchanged waivers of 3-year exclusivity (e.g., single-entity, extended-release hydrocodone …
It is often said that companies have an absolute right to petition the government to take or not take action without fearing exposure to an antitrust suit. This “right” is thought to be based on a series of Supreme Court decisions that are collectively commonly referred …
Earlier this month, FDA published much-needed draft guidance on 180-day exclusivity, titled “180-Day Exclusivity: Questions and Answers.” We perused the document and promptly posted on it the next day, noting, among other things, that the draft guidance doesn’t reveal anything revolutionary, but rather, provides a …
Earlier this week, Representatives Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) and Kurt Schrader (D-OR) announced the introduction of H.R. 749, the Lower Drug Costs Through Competition Act. The bill, which appears to be nearly identical to H.R. 4784 introduced in March 2016, is intended “to lower the cost …
Last week, just before the new Orange Book (print and electronic versions) made its debut, we opined (see our previous post here) that changes to the Orange Book Preface would likely be made. Now that the print version of the Orange Book is available (here), …
In a Complaint filed on January 27, 2017 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, ANDA applicant Amneal Pharmaceuticals LLC (“Amneal”) alleges that FDA incorrectly ruled that Amneal forfeited eligibility for 180-day exclusivity for generic versions of NAMENDA XR (memantine HCl) Extended-release …
FDA recently put forth its first interpretation of the Regenerative Advanced Therapy (“RAT”) designation program, which was established by section 3033 of the 21st Century Cures Act. Although it consists of just a few short paragraphs on FDA’s website (here), the guidance confirms that FDA …
FDA’s October 6, 2016 Final Rule implementing certain provisions of the December 8, 2003 Medicare Modernization Act (“MMA”), Pub. L. No. 108-173, 117 Stat. 2066, ushered in a lot of changes for NDA and ANDA applicants and sponsors (see our previous post here). The new …
Hardly a day goes by that we don’t see a press release or announcement that a company has requested or received from FDA’s Office of Orphan Products Development (“OOPD”) designation of its drug or biological product as an “orphan drug.” There’s a reason for that: …
On Wednesday, January 25, 2017, a new chapter will begin in the decades-old story of FDA’s Approved Drug Products with Therapeutic Equivalence Evaluations (the “Orange Book”). According to a note posted on the Electronic Orange Book website last week (as well as in a separate …
On January 20, 2017, the Trump administration took a first step toward delaying, reconsidering, and potentially undoing numerous regulations and policies issued by the Obama administration. In order to ensure that “the President’s appointees or designees have the opportunity to review any new or pending …
It feels like déjà vu. In 2011, FDA announced the establishment of a docket to evaluate its policies on communications and activities related to off-label uses of marketed products; late in 2014, FDA committed to issuing new guidance by the end of 2014 to address …
After a relatively slow first 11 months of 2016, FDA’s Office of Prescription Drug Promotion (“OPDP”) issued a flurry of letters in the span of 9 days in December, more than doubling the enforcement letters issued up to that point in the year. And the …
