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Brand-name drugmaker can be sued for harm caused by generic drug

Home/Pharma News | Posted 18/01/2013

On 4 January 2013 the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that Pfizer can be sued for failing to warn about a drug’s risks by a patient who claimed he was injured by a generic version of its gastric reflux medicine Reglan (metoclopramide).

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Teva makes South Korean joint venture agreement

Home/Pharma News | Posted 11/01/2013

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (Teva) announced on 16 December 2012 that it had made an agreement with Handok Pharmaceuticals (Handok) to establish a business venture in South Korea.

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Teva cost-cutting and re-organization

Home/Pharma News | Posted 14/12/2012

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries’ (Teva’s) new Chief Executive vowed to reshape the drugmaker and reduce annual costs by up to US$2 billion over the next five years, making it into ‘the most indispensable medicines company in the world’.

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Eli Lilly and Strides Arcolab in generics deal

Home/Pharma News | Posted 07/12/2012

Pharma giant Eli Lilly and India-based generics manufacturer Strides Arcolab announced on 5 December 2012 a collaboration to market the latter’s generic cancer drugs in emerging markets.

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Sanofi to acquire Colombian generics maker

Home/Pharma News | Posted 12/10/2012

Healthcare major Sanofi announced on 2 October 2012 that it has signed an agreement to acquire Colombian generics manufacturer Laboratorios Genfar (Genfar), making Sanofi a market leader in Colombia and expand its portfolio of affordable pharmaceuticals in Latin America.

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GPhA drug shortages plan gets FTC approval

Home/Pharma News | Posted 12/10/2012

On 8 August 2012 the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a positive advisory opinion to the Generic Pharmaceutical Association (GPhA) approving its Accelerated Recovery Initiative (ARI), which hopes to address drug shortage issues, after the FTC found the ARI will not be anticompetitive as sensitive information will be protected.

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Fresenius cashes in on drug shortages

Home/Pharma News | Posted 21/09/2012

German healthcare conglomerate Fresenius has posted substantial growth across all regions and product areas during the first half of 2012 for its US business Fresenius Kabi. The growth has been largely attributed to rivals’ problems with supplying generics on the drug shortages list in the US.

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Generics market set to increase in Japan

Home/Pharma News | Posted 14/09/2012

Japan has not been an easy place for drugmakers to do business. However, with government initiatives being introduced to increase generics use and taking into account the fact that Japan is currently the world’s second largest pharmaceutical market, it is perhaps not surprising that a new partnership is optimistic about the opportunities.

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Sun Pharma finally gains full control of Taro

Home/Pharma News | Posted 24/08/2012

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (Sun Pharma) and Taro Pharmaceutical Industries (Taro) announced on 13 August 2012 that they have entered into a merger agreement together. India-based Sun Pharma has agreed to pay out an additional US$600 million in order to finally gain full control of Israel-based Taro.

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Fuji Pharma acquires OLIC Thailand

Home/Pharma News | Posted 24/08/2012

Fuji Pharma Co Ltd announced on 3 August 2012 that it has entered into an agreement to acquire the shares of OLIC (Thailand) Ltd, the largest pharmaceutical contract manufacturer in Thailand.

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Generics makers Sun and Stada considering deal

Home/Pharma News | Posted 10/08/2012

Rumours are that Indian-based generics manufacturer Sun Pharma and Germany’s generics maker Stada Arzneimittel (Stada) may be looking at a deal in the near future, although both sides deny or refuse to comment on the matter.

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Political battle over US health care continues

Home/Pharma News | Posted 18/06/2012

It was not the end of the story when the Affordable Care Act was passed in 2010. Its implementation is being fought every inch of the way; the Republican Party is split even though voter polls say 70% would scrap the whole Act or at least its central plank.

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Drug shortages are persisting

Home/Pharma News | Posted 08/06/2012

The media are reporting continuing problems on drug shortages, and indeed a worsening situation around the world. Cancer drugs seem to be the most affected.

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APPG reports on drug shortages and MHRA bans unlicensed stock trading

Home/Pharma News | Posted 25/05/2012

On 14 May 2012, the All-Party Pharmacy Group (APPG) published the results of its inquiry into drug shortages in the UK. In response to this the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has decided to ban unlicensed stock trading by pharmacists.

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IMS Health enlisted as information provider for drug shortages

Home/Pharma News | Posted 18/05/2012

The Generic Pharmaceutical Association (GPhA) announced on 19 April 2012 that it had selected IMS Health (IMS) to serve as the Independent Third Party in the Accelerated Recovery Initiative (ARI), providing information on generic drug shortages to FDA.

Also noted on pharma: 11 May 2012

Home/Pharma News | Posted 11/05/2012

UK government considers carrying out survey on drug shortages
The UK Department of Health (DoH) is considering a one-off survey of community pharmacies in England to assess the impact of drug shortages, Health Minister Simon Burns has confirmed. The move has followed requests from Ministers of Parliament (MPs) to carry out such a survey.

MP Irranca-Davies said, ‘in the meantime, I urge pharmacists and GPs to write to their MPs and demand that they lobby the health minister to carry out this research.’

The problem is far from being resolved, a Chemist+Druggist’s 2011 Stock Survey of pharmacies in the UK found that more than 140 pharmacists had seen a patient’s health suffer because of supply problems.

Related articles

UK drug shortages are far from being solved

UK drug shortages continue to affect pharmacists and patients

Members of parliament to hold inquiry into UK drug shortages

Source: Chemist+Druggist

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FDA says efforts to prevent drug shortages are working

Home/Pharma News | Posted 11/05/2012

FDA Commissioner Ms Margaret Hamburg has reported that the FDA’s office of drug shortages has made progress in preventing drug shortages and working with industry to provide advanced warning when the agency is unable to prevent a shortage. In a posting on the agency’s FDA Voice Blog on 3 May 2012, Ms Hamburg said that she was ‘both amazed and delighted to see the progress that’s been made’.

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Amgen enters biosimilars deal with PRA

Home/Pharma News | Posted 04/05/2012

Clinical Research Organisation (CRO) PRA announced on 26 April 2012 that it had entered into an agreement with US biotechnology giant Amgen as the sole provider of CRO services for ‘a series of phase III studies to develop several biosimilar drugs on a worldwide basis’.

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CMS rules add to US drug shortages

Home/Pharma News | Posted 23/04/2012

Results of a survey carried out by the Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP) and published on 22 March 2012 point to the fact that ‘too strict’ rules from the US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) have led to waste of medications already in short supply.

Also noted on pharma: 13 April 2012

Home/Pharma News | Posted 13/04/2012

Drug shortages increase again in 2011
Despite efforts by FDA the number of drugs in short supply has increased again in 2011, according to data from the University of Utah, USA. Levels are more than 4.5 times higher than in 2004, when 58 drugs were reported to be in short supply, and have reached a new record high of 267 drugs experiencing shortages.

Related article

Record high drug shortages in the US

Source: The Washington Post