State court to examine ‘pay-for-delay’ deals by drugmakers

March 2, 2012
California Watch
By Bernice Yeung

California is the first state to examine whether pharmaceutical companies can pay competitors to not make or sell cheaper generic versions of their prescription drugs.

The California Supreme Court last month agreed to review a 10-year-old class-action lawsuit involving the antibiotic Cipro (ciprofloxacin), which originally was manufactured by drugmaker Bayer. The suit argues that it was illegal for Bayer to pay a competitor to stay out of the market as part of a settlement in a legal dispute over the Cipro patent.

The deal forced hundreds of thousands of Californians to collectively overpay millions of dollars for the drug, the lawsuit claimed. Read more

Also In The News

Tell Us Your Thoughts

How do you feel about having to pay more than everyone else for your medication? Tell us your story. **By filling out this form you are giving RxRights permission to use your comments to help build support for safe, affordable drug importation.**