Pharma News

US generics maker Actavis (formerly Watson) confirmed on 14 May 2013 that the company had entered into discussions to buy Irish drugmaker Warner Chilcott.

On 5 May 2013, the Prime Minister of the Philippines, Mr Sheikh Hasina, urged the country to import pharmaceutical products from Bangladesh, particularly for the countries governmental hospitals and clinics, due to the significant cost savings to be made.

Drugmaker Valeant Pharmaceuticals International (Valeant) was in talks to acquire generics manufacturer Actavis for more than US$13 billion, in what would rank as one of the biggest healthcare deals this year. However, reports are that the deal is now on hold.

The UK’s competition watchdog is accusing GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) of delaying the entry of generics to its antidepressant drug Seroxat (paroxetine) by paying rival companies to stay off the market.

In the long saga of generics pre-emption, The New York Times is adding its opinion to the argument of whether generics makers are liable for injuries caused by their products. The newspaper believes that ‘manufacturers should bear responsibility for making sure their drugs are safe and effective’ and is urging US Congress to amend laws to allow patients to sue generics manufacturers.

Greece and Syria are both facing severe shortages in essential medicines, but for very different reasons.

Greece is facing a severe drug shortage in more than 200 drugs. The worrying situation is being blamed on drugmakers that have stopped shipping their products to the country due to debts or fear of parallel trade.

Lack of reward for manufacturing quality is forcing manufacturers of sterile injectable generics to reduce investments into quality system and is leading to drug shortages, according to FDA officials [1].

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (Sun Pharma) announced on 8 February 2013 that it had given up on its effort to buy the remaining stock of Taro Pharmaceutical Industries (Taro) for about US$685 million after Taro shareholders held out for a higher price.

On 31 January 2013 the European Commission (EC) sent a statement of objections, to US-based Johnson & Johnson (J&J) and Switzerland-based Novartis accusing them of delayed entry of a generic painkiller.