U.S. judge Sidney Stein today granted a request from Sanofi-Aventis and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. to block the sale of a generic form of their top-selling Plavix blood thinner.
However, the federal judge denied a motion seeking a recall of the generic product that has already been distributed by Canadian drugmaker Apotex.
BMS shares rose nearly 7 percent in extended trade.
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Plavix, the No. 2-selling prescription medicine in the world after the cholesterol drug Lipitor, has worldwide sales of more than $6 billion.
Brand-name sales in the United States plummeted last week to $14 million -- down from $62.7 million a week before Apotex's launch -- as generic Plavix seized 75 percent of new prescriptions, according to Verispan, a consumer market-research company.
Stein's order remains in effect until a patent-infringement suit by Bristol-Myers and Sanofi is heard or Apotex is successful in having the injunction overturned by a federal appeals court.
"It's stunning," Barry Sherman, Apotex's founder and chief executive, said in a telephone interview from the company's headquarters in suburban Toronto. "We feel there is strong grounds for appeal and will appeal immediately."
Those of you who want to see Judge Stein's entire ruling can go to this link:
http://www.nysd.uscourts.gov/courtweb/public.htm
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