In the second lawsuit in as many months, the Patent and Trademark Office (“PTO”) has been sued over a decision to deny a Patent Term Extension (“PTE”). As we previously reported, Wyeth sued the PTO and FDA in June 2008 concerning the appropriate PTE regulatory …
In a case brought by POM Wonderful under the Lanham Act and California state statutes governing false advertising and unfair competition, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California held Purely Juice and its president liable to the tune of nearly $1.5 million. …
On July 15, 2008, FDA issued a final rule exempting investigational drugs used in phase 1 studies (as described in 21 C.F.R. § 312.21 of FDA’s IND regulations) from the Current Good Manufacturing Practice (“CGMP”) requirements in 21 C.F.R. Part 211. This exemption does not …
When Congress enacted the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (“FDCA”) in 1938, it required New Drug Applications (“NDAs”) for “any” new drug. At the time, approximately half of the drugs in this country were compounded, not manufactured. Today, while the percentage of compounded prescriptions …
On July 18, 2008, in a rare “win” (depending on which side you are on) on a motion for reconsideration, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana (Indianapolis Division), vacated the court’s September 2007 decision in Tucker v. SmithKline Beecham Corp., in …
As widely reported earlier this month, FDA and the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) intensified their investigation of Indian drug company Ranbaxy, Inc. On July 3, 2008, the government moved to enforce administrative subpoenas directed at Ranbaxy and the company’s consultant, PAREXEL Consulting concerning information about …
In previous postings (here and here), we have observed that § 912 of the 2007 FDA Amendments Act (“FDAAA”), which added the new § 301(ll) prohibition to the FDC Act, could represent a fundamental shift in the dividing line between foods and drugs, and has …
Under the terms of a 1987 Memorandum of Understanding, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (“TTB”) exercises jurisdiction over labeling of distilled spirits, wines, and malt beverages subject to the Federal Alcohol Administration Act (“FAA Act”), and FDA exercises jurisdiction over other alcohol …
An interesting issue is percolating at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“PTO”) concerning Patent Term Extensions (“PTEs”). We hinted at this issue in our recent post concerning the PTO’s decision to deny a PTE with respect to U.S. Patent #5,674,860 (“the ‘860 patent”), which …
On June 10, 2008, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (“PhRMA”) announced the release of a newly revised version of the “Code on Interactions with Healthcare Professionals,” which is a voluntary code focusing on the industry’s interactions with healthcare professionals as they relate to …
In June, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“PTO”) determined that AstraZeneca’s U.S. Patent No. 5,674,860 (“the ‘860 patent”), which covers the drug product SYMBICORT (budesonide; formoterol fumarate dihydrate) Inhalation Aerosol, is ineligible for a Patent Term Extension (“PTE”). The PTO’s decision is important in …
On June 26, 2008, ranking Republican of the U.S. House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee, Representative Joe Barton (R-TX), along with several co-sponsors, introduced the “Strengthening of FDA Integrity Act of 2008” (H.R. 6378). According to an Energy and Commerce Committee Republicans press release, …
On June 27, 2008, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”) published a much anticipated Notice of Proposed Rulemaking Regarding Electronic Prescriptions for Controlled Substances. The proposed regulations are in addition to existing prescribing requirements for controlled substances and are expected to work in tandem with …
On June 11, 2008, the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (“ACCME”) issued for comment a proposal “that the commercial support of continuing medical education end.” The proposal is intended to provoke debate on whether unbiased CME is possible when funded by individual pharmaceutical or …
On June 27, 2008, the District of Columbia Department of Health proposed regulations to implement Title 1 of the SafeRx Amendment Act of 2008 (“SafeRx Act”), which FDA Law Blog previously reported on in January 2008. Under the proposed regulations, pharmaceutical detailers in the District …
