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GPhA Says Recent Cipro Decision Again Demonstrates Patent Settlements Are Pro-Competitive and Benefit Consumers

WASHINGTON, D.C., SEPTEMBER 9, 2010 – The following statement was released today by the Generic Pharmaceutical Association (GPhA) regarding the September 7, 2010, decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit denying an en banc hearing in the Cipro patent settlement case.

“GPhA applauds the decision this week by the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit denying an en banc hearing in the Cipro case. We hope that Members of Congress will see this decision as a clear sign that the FTC’s position that patent settlements are anti-competitive, anti-consumer is fatally flawed.

“Patents, issued by the government, are given the presumption of validity. Any market entry of a generic drug before the brand patent expires—whether as the result of a finding that the generic product does not infringe the patent, that the patent is not enforceable or through a patent settlement agreement with the brand company—is a positive, cost-saving event for consumers.

“The courts play a critical role in the process of resolving patent litigation. They have the power and expertise to scrutinize settlements on a case-by-case basis. This most recent ruling again confirms that patent settlements enable lower priced generics to enter the market prior to patent expiration, at savings to consumers.

“GPhA urges Congress to examine the facts around patent settlements and not base important health policy decisions on rhetoric and half-truths. It is the patent that precludes or delays a generic from coming to market. Settlements have never resulted in delaying generic market entry past patent expiration. Winning drug patent litigation is a 50-50 proposition at best for generic companies. But settling patent litigation is a proven way to assure that affordable generics reach consumers earlier than would otherwise be possible.”

GPhA represents the manufacturers and distributors of finished generic pharmaceuticals, manufacturers and distributors of bulk pharmaceutical chemicals, and suppliers of other goods and services to the generic industry. Generic pharmaceuticals fill 75 percent of the prescriptions dispensed in the U.S. but consume just 22 percent of the total drug spending. Additional information is available at gphaonline.org.

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