July 30th 2019
By Allison Inserro
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued civil subpoenas to Johnson & Johnson (J&J) in June as part of an antitrust investigation into the contracting practices for the autoimmune drug Remicade, the originator infliximab sold by its Janssen unit, the company said in a regulatory filing on Monday.
July 29th 2019
By Kelly Davio
Senator Dick Durbin, D-Illinois, said that the “termination cliff” on the transition date creates a “perverse incentive that could delay approval” for biosimilar insulins, and said that the new legislation would create a faster approval path for lower-cost products.
July 28th 2019
Novartis, developer of the brand-name Lucentis, announced on Friday that the European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) has granted the drug a positive opinion for the treatment of retinopathy of prematurity in infants.
July 26th 2019
Fourteen parties have submitted comments on the guidance; in addition to other concerns with the document, including calls for clarification on the use of non-US comparator products and the potential for the waiver of bridging studies in the biosimilar development process, some drug makers called on the FDA to clarify issues associated with lot-to-lot variation and quality attributes.
The Center for Biosimilars® recaps the top stories for the week of July 22, 2019.
July 24th 2019
Earlier this month, a federal appeals court heard arguments in Texas v Azar. If the judge sides with the Republican point of view that the entire Affordable Care Act (ACA) is unconstitutional and invalidates the landmark law, the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCIA), the pathway for biosimilars included in the ACA, would have to start over from scratch. That shouldn’t be a problem, according to 2 conservative healthcare and pharmaceutical observers interviewed by The Center for Biosimilars®.
Genentech had asked the court for a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction against Amgen in a Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCIA) litigation related to patents covering Herceptin. The United States District Court for the District of Delaware denied Genentech’s motion, and the court has now made public a redacted version of the memorandum opinion in the matter.
July 23rd 2019
The FDA has approved Pfizer’s rituximab biosimilar, Ruxience (rituximab-pvvr), referencing Rituxan. The biosimilar was approved to treat non-Hodgkin lymphoma, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, and granulomatosis with polyangiitis and microscopic polyangiitis.
"We argue that the default should be that biosimilars are interchangeable, unless there is compelling evidence otherwise," write Hans C. Ebers, PhD, of Biogen, and Hubb Schellekens, MD, PhD, of Utrecht University.
July 22nd 2019
Senator Ted Cruz, R-Texas, has reintroduced a bill he thinks will speed US approval of drugs, biologics, or devices approved in other countries.
