Earlier today, FDA announced that Dr. Janet Woodcock was appointed as the permanent director of FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (“CDER”). The CDER directorship is a position familiar to Dr. Woodcock. She served as CDER Director from 1994 to 2005. Dr. Woodcock’s most …
In April 2007, we reported on a complaint filed by a group of non-profit organizations (including the Association of American Physicians & Surgeons, Concerned Women for America, Family Research Council, and Safe Drugs For Women) against FDA (and later Duramed Pharmaceuticals, Inc.) in the U.S. …
On February 29, 2008, Judge Stadtmueller of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin dismissed a lawsuit brought by Schering-Plough Healthcare Products, Inc. (“Schering”) against three manufacturers of prescription polyethylene glycol 3350 (“PEG”), a laxative drug product. In its lawsuit, Schering …
In August 2007, Teva Pharmaceuticals USA submitted a citizen petition to FDA requesting that the Agency relist in the Orange Book U.S. Patent #5,158,952 (“the ‘952 patent”) covering Janssen Phaemaceutica’s RISPERDAL (risperidone) Tablets (approved under NDA #20-272), and to confirm the company’s eligibility for 180-day …
On February 27, 2008, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit issued a decision in United States v. Caputo, in which the court generally affirmed a “complex and unusual” district court decision holding criminally liable a corporate Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”) and, remarkably, …
One year ago today, Hyman, Phelps & McNamara, P.C., started FDA Law Blog with this post and a promise to provide you with timely updates on FDA enforcement actions, proposed rules, personnel changes, new and improved policies, along with related issues such as healthcare fraud …
Earlier this year, we reported on Senator Sherrod Brown’s (D-OH) request to the Congressional Research Service (“CRS”) for information concerning FDA’s “Fast Track” designation program “to help determine whether a case exists for changing or eliminating the 10-year-old initiative that was intended to speed the …
Earlier today, the U.S. Supreme Court announced a 4-4 split in Warner-Lambert v. Kent – just a few days after hearing oral arguments on February 25, 2008. The case, which concerns the narrow issue of a Michigan law immunizing drug companies from products liability claims …
Preemption of state law concerning FDA-regulated products (drugs, devices, and foods) has been the hot topic over the past few weeks. First, on February 20, 2008, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Riegel v. Medtronic that preemption principles and the 1976 Medical Device Amendments bar …
Over the past several weeks, FDA Law Blog has closely followed issues concerning the United States Sentencing Commission’s proposed changes to the Sentencing Guidelines that are applicable to certain FDA criminal offenses. In our most recent post, we reported on a February 13, 2008 public …
Last week, FDA announced a consent decree of permanent injunction had been entered into with two food companies – Brownwood Acres Foods, Inc. and Cherry Capital Services, Inc. (doing business as Flavonoid Services) – and their top executives, prohibiting them from making unauthorized drug and …
Advisory Opinion No. 08-04 (Free Trial Program) Last week, the Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) of the Department of Health and Human Services posted an advisory opinion addressing a free drug trial program for hemophilia A patients (“Proposed Arrangement”). This was the first opinion outside of …
In March 2004, California consumers filed a class action lawsuit against several grocery stores alleging that the stores violated California state law by failing to disclose the presence of the color additives astaxanthin and canthaxanthin in farmed salmon. The plaintiffs alleged that the lack of …
In an 8-to-1 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court held earlier this week that preemption principles and the 1976 Medical Device Amendments (“MDA”) bar common law claims on the basis of safety or effectiveness of devices approved by FDA under a Premarket Approval Application (“PMA”). The …
Last week, Apotex Inc. submitted an interesting Petition for Stay of Action to FDA requesting that the Agency recognize the company’s remaining 180-day exclusivity for its generic version of Sanofi-Synthelabo’s PLAVIX (clopidogrel bisulfate) by staying the effective date of final approval of other ANDAs (and …
