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On July 14, 2016, the House of Representatives passed S.764 creating a National Bioengineered Food Standard.  Importantly for food manufacturers and distributors, the law – expected to be signed by President Obama – will preempt all state laws “relating to the labeling or disclosure of whether a food is bioengineered or was developed or produced using bioengineering” if that standard is not identical to the mandatory disclosure under the new federal standard.  Once enacted, the law will preempt the Vermont GMO labeling Act that went into effect July 1, 2016.
Continue Reading Forget About Vermont!: Congress Passes GMO “Labeling” Legislation

The FDA has been gradually issuing guidances to implement the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act of 2009 (“BPCIA”). One of the most eagerly awaited guidance documents has been that on nonproprietary names to be used for biosimilar products. On August 28, 2015, the FDA finally issued its draft “Guidance for Industry: Nonproprietary Naming of Biological Products” (“the draft Guidance”). The draft Guidance will apply to all newly licensed and previously licensed biological drug products approved under Sections 351(a) and (k) of the Public Health Service Act (“PHSA”), except those for which a nonproprietary name is provided in 21 C.F.R. Part 600 and certain other biologic products “for which there are well-established, robust identification and tracking systems to ensure safe dispensing practices and optimal pharmacovigilance.” See 80 Fed. Reg. 52296 (August 28, 2015).
Continue Reading What’s in a Name? That Which We Call a Biological Product…

Applicants seeking approval of Abbreviated New Drug Applications (ANDAs) in most cases must perform bioequivalence studies comparing their proposed generic product to the innovator drug listed in the Orange Book, called the “Reference Listed Drug” or “RLD”. Issues have arisen as to whether a RLD sponsor can provide samples for bioequivalence studies when the RLD is subject to a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy (“REMS”). A REMS is a program design to assure that a drug with a known significant risk or risks can and will be used safely, by a variety of different measures, including, for example, restricted distribution and labeling. The existence of a REMS has been used by RLD sponsors to refuse to sell samples of their RLD drug product to ANDA applicants who are seeking them for use in bioequivalence studies. This has led to litigation over whether it is legal for the RLD sponsor to do so, as will be discussed hereinafter.
Continue Reading New FDA Draft Guidance on REMS and Bioequivalence Studies: Does New Procedure Secure ANDA Applicants The Right to Obtain Samples?

In our previous blog post of November 11, 2014, we noted that Celltrion had filed a declaratory judgment action against Kennedy Trust for Rheumatology Research for invalidity of certain patents covering methods of treating rheumatoid arthritis.  Celltrion Healthcare Co. v. Kennedy Trust for Rheumatology Research, Case No. 1:14-cv-02256-PAC (S.D.N.Y. 2014).  Unlike the other cases in which the biosimilar applicants challenged patents owned by reference product sponsors, this case involved a biosimilar applicants’ challenge to a patent that was not owned by the reference product sponsor (Janssen Biotech, Inc.), but by a licensor (Kennedy Trust for Rheumatology Research).  Janssen had a non-exclusive license to the Kennedy Trust patents in suit and Celltrion had voluntarily dismissed its declaratory judgment action of patent invalidity against Janssen on October 23, 2014.
Continue Reading Update: Sandoz and Celltrion Decline the Invitation to Dance: Biosimilars Challenge the Applicability of the BPCIA’s Exchange Provisions Before Bringing Suit

In our blog post of November 18, 2013 (“No Avoiding BPCIA For Biosimilars: No Patent Declaratory Judgment Before Biosimilars Application is Filed”), we discussed the decision of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California holding that a biosimilars applicant could not avoid the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (“BPCIA”) patent exchange process by filing a patent declaratory judgment prior to filing its 351(k) biosimilar application.  That case – Sandoz, Inc. v. Amgen Inc. – is on appeal to U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.  (Appeal docketed as No. 14-1693, Fed. Cir., December 13, 2013).  While that case, involving Amgen’s ENBREL® product, will decide the issue of whether BCPIA patent process can be avoided by filing a declaratory judgment prior to filing of the 351(k) application, another dispute has arisen between Sandoz and Amgen as to whether the patent and application certification and exchange process in Section 351(l)(2) of the Public Health Service Act is mandatory or permissive.
Continue Reading Sandoz and Celltrion Decline the Invitation to Dance: Biosimilars Challenge the Applicability of the BPCIA’s Exchange Provisions Before Bringing Suit

On November 15, 2013, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) adopted special rules for determining whether “exclusive” licenses of pharmaceutical patents are required to be reported to the FTC and the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Premerger Notification requirements as asset transfers/acquisitions.  See 78 Fed. Reg. 68705, et seq.  While exclusive licenses of any patent regardless of industry have always been subject to reporting under the Premerger Notification rules as asset transfers/acquisitions, assuming they met the monetary thresholds for reporting, the FTC, adopted new rules specifically targeting exclusive licenses of patents of pharmaceutical companies.
Continue Reading FTC Targets Reporting of Licensing of Pharmaceutical Patents With Special Rules for Premerger Notification: What You Need to Know

In our prior blog post of the same title on July 5, 2013, we predicted that the protection from product liability/failure to warn litigation for generic manufacturers as a result of the Supreme Court decision in Mutual Pharmaceutical Co., Inc. v. Bartlett, 133 S. Ct. 2466 (2013) might be short-lived.  FDA, in a Federal Register notice dated November 13, 2013, has proposed to allow holders of Abbreviated New Drug Applications (“ANDA’s”) for generic drugs to file supplements for labeling changes that might cause its labeling – on at least a temporary basis – to differ from the labeling of its Reference Listed Drug.  The proposed rule was published at 78 Fed. Reg. 67,985 and allowed for comments to be filed by January 13, 2014.  By notice of Federal Register of December 27, 2013, 78 Fed. Reg. 78,796, FDA extended the comment date to March 13, 2014.  What generic manufacturers need to know about this proposed rule is not only would it eliminate product liability protection, but it would increase their regulatory burdens.
Continue Reading A Short-Lived Victory for Generic Manufacturers? – Part 2

The United States District Court for the Northern District of California ruled November 12, 2013, that a party seeking to obtain approval of a biosimilar could not avoid the process set forth in the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act of 2009 (“BPCIA”) by obtaining a declaratory judgment of patent invalidity before even submitting a biosimilars application.  See Sandoz Inc. v. Amgen Inc., Civil No. 13-2894 MMC, _____ USLW _____ (N.D. Cal. 2013).
Continue Reading No Avoiding BPCIA For Biosimilars: No Patent Declaratory Judgment Action Before Biosimilars Application Is Filed

On July 25, 2013, the Food and Drug Administration (“FDA” or “the Agency”) published a Draft Guidance for Industry entitled “Pre-Launch Activities Importation Requests”, or “PLAIR”. The draft guidance describes FDA policy on requests for importation of unapproved finished dosage form drug products by an applicant preparing for market launch pursuant to a New Drug Application (“NDA”), an Abbreviated New Drug Application (“ANDA”) or a Biologics License Application (“BLA”). The draft guidance describes the procedure for making requests for importation prior to approval, as well as the factors FDA will look to in deciding whether to grant such requests.
Continue Reading FDA’s Draft Guidance For Industry On Pre-Launch Activities Importation Requests: Dead On Arrival?

On June 24, 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its decision in Mutual Pharmaceutical Co. Inc. v. Bartlett, 570 U.S. ____ (2013), finding that design-defect claims against generic drug companies are pre-empted where federal law prohibits an action required by state law. The Supreme Court had previously held in Pliva v. Mensing, 564 U.S. ____ (2011) that failure to warn claims against generic drug manufacturers are pre-empted by the Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act since generic drug makers must copy innovator drug labeling precisely in order to obtain approval of their products by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”). The Court in Mutual rejected the argument of lower courts that the generic manufacturer could comply with both federal and state law by choosing not to make and distribute the product at all.
Continue Reading A Short-Lived Victory for Generic Drug Manufacturers?