Antitrust Plays Whack-a-Mole as Exclusion of Competition by Drug Monopolists Pops Up Again: Gaming the “REMS”

Some brand-name drug manufacturers have used various tactics—some lawful and some arguably unlawful—in an effort to delay generic competition and maintain monopoly profits.

Fall 2016

The pharmaceutical industry is a big business. Top selling drugs, many protected by patents, often sell at prices reflecting the monopoly power that brand-name drug manufacturers may enjoy. Enter the fray, generic competition, offering patients therapeutic equivalents to brand-name drugs at a fraction of the cost--saving consumers hundreds of billions of dollars each year. The first generic drug to come to market is typically offered at a price discount of 20% to 30% off the brand-name, with entry by additional generic competitors driving the discount to as much as 90%.

Reprinted with permission from: NYLitigator, Fall 2016, Vol. 21, No. 2, published by the New York State Bar Association, One Elk Street, Albany, New York, 12207

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New York State Bar Association, NYLitigator , Vol. 21, No. 2

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