Neither Jazz Pharmaceuticals nor Avadel CNS Pharmaceuticals has taken the battle of sodium oxybate—a drug approved to treat narcolepsy—lying down. After suing each other in patent litigation and Avadel’s suit against FDA challenging the Agency’s authority to compel patent certifications, it’s Jazz’s turn to sue …
FDA has not been shy about its distaste for the Catalyst decision; the Agency has published on its website the litany of problems that arise from it and has sent emails and letters to stakeholders essentially urging them to contact Congress to address the decision. …
In early 1984, a year after President Reagan signed the Orphan Drug Act into law, the FDA was not seeing the anticipated avalanche of requests for orphan drug designation. At that time, new Federal laws on drugs were far and few between. FDR signed the …
On December 29, 2022, the President signed into law the Food and Drug Omnibus Reform Act of 2022 (“FDORA”) as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023, Pub. L. No. 117-328 (2022). FDORA primarily amends the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and the Public …
On September 30, 2022, President Biden signed into law the Continuing Appropriations and Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2023, Division F of which is titled the “FDA User Fee Reauthorization Act of 2022” (“FUFRA”). In addition to reauthorizing for an additional five fiscal years—Fiscal Years 2023-2027—several …
We’re in the midst of UFA (User Fee Act) season! It’s the quinquennial event when many of the UFAs are up for reauthorization. And with “must-pass” FDA legislation, comes a host of riders—pieces of FDA-related legislation not specific to UFA reauthorization, but that folks seek …
Our last post on the Eleventh Circuit’s September 2021 decision in Catalyst v. Becerra got a lot of attention. We’d like to think that this is because the scope of orphan drug exclusivity is as fascinating to everyone as it is to us, but if …
Because a drug is designated an “Orphan” if it is intended to treat a “rare condition,” the condition itself always has been integral to Orphan Drug Exclusivity. Indeed, the condition for which the product is intended to treat dictates the prevalence calculation by which FDA …
In the appellate courts lately, it’s been FDA “Against the Music.” In yet another decision based on statutory interpretation, an appellate court has decided that FDA’s interpretation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) is contrary to the plain text of the statute. …
Hyman, Phelps & McNamara, P.C., is proud to announce that Frank J. Sasinowski, a Director at the firm, this past Saturday was awarded by Pope Francis the “2021 Pontifical Hero Award for Inspiration” for his “unwavering advocacy for those who live with rare diseases.” The award …
In a March 13, 2020 opinion, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit handed Eagle Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Eagle) a significant win in FDA’s appeal from a District Court order requiring FDA to grant Orphan Drug Exclusivity to Eagle’s Bendeka (bendamustine) …
On December 13, 2019, Nature Reviews Drug Discovery published an article that reviews the landscape of the development of drugs for rare diseases, both the progress and challenges. The article was authored by HP&M Attorney James E. Valentine along with co-authors from the BioPontis Alliance …
Developing drugs for kids with rare diseases is important work. If you would like to hear from one of these kids, check out this video: “My Philosophy for a Happy Life,” by the late Sam Berns. Offering priority review vouchers to sponsors that develop new drugs …
On April 29, 2019, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) convened a public meeting entitled “Patient Perspectives on the Impact of Rare Diseases: Bridging the Commonalities.” This meeting was attended by people with rare diseases, their caregivers and family members, patient advocates, industry representatives and …
Okay, okay . . . . It’s now a month after Rare Disease Day (on which Hyman, Phelps & McNamara, P.C.’s own Frank J. Sasinowski took part in some of the festivities). We’re a little late this year in pulling together and posting on the …
