Maintains “pay-for-delay” practice by a pharmaceutical company violates antitrust law.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has appealed a federal district court’s dismissal of an antitrust case. The commission submitted an amicus brief to the Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals regarding the antitrust case involving Forest Laboratories Inc. and six generic drug manufacturers. The FTC asserts that the large payments made by Forest to the generic companies may violate antitrust laws.
These payments are known as reverse-payment settlements or pay-for-delay agreements, where a brand-name drug manufacturer pays a potential generic competitor to delay the introduction of a generic drug. The FTC claims that the district court erred in dismissing the plaintiffs’ allegations and failed to place the burden of justification on the brand-name lab and the other defendants.
The FTC highlighted the importance of the 2013 Supreme Court decision in Federal Trade Commission v. Actavis Inc., which ruled that “large” and “unjustified” reverse payments can potentially violate antitrust laws.
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- For wisdom for the judges of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals as they consider the merits of the case.
- For Chair Lina Khan and members of the Federal Trade Commission to seek God’s guidance as they enforce federal trade regulations.
- For U.S. officials as they pursue possibilities that would lower the cost of prescription drugs.
Sources: Federal Trade Commission
