Judge Rules Drug Maker Can’t Shelve Old Pill

December 12, 2014

(New York Times) – A federal judge has decided to block for now an attempt by the drug company Actavis to halt sales of an older form of its Alzheimer’s disease drug Namenda in favor of a newer version with a longer patent life. The decision, issued Thursday, represents a victory for New York’s attorney general, who had filed an antitrust lawsuit against Actavis in September, accusing the company of forcing patients to switch to the newer version of the widely used medicine to thwart competition from generic manufacturers.