In the latest bid by regulators to squash so-called pay-to-delay deals, the European Commission has filed a complaint against Johnson & Johnson and Novartis – and its Sandoz generic subsidiary – for allegedly conspiring to delay the generic introduction of a version of the fentanyl pain patch in the Netherlands.
The move had been expected after European antitrust regulators opened a probe into the drugmakers in October 2011 as part of a widening crackdown on such deals (back story). The concern has picked up steam in recent years as governments attempt to grapple with rising healthcare costs and investigators have gone so far as to raid offices seeking incriminating documentation.
Last July, several drugmakers – including Lundbeck, Merck KGgA and Ranbaxy Laboratories – were charged with blocking the entry of generic versions of the best-selling Celexa antidepressant (read here). The EU also charged Servier and several other drugmakers, including Teva Pharmaceuticals (TEVA), with conspiring to delay a generic version of the Perindopril heart medicine (see this).
Thursday, January 31, 2013
EU Charges J&J And Novartis With Pay-To-Delay // Pharmalot
via pharmalot.com
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