Comment
Author: Admin | 2025-04-28
The company saidgeneric competition caused the loss of more than e 2 billion (U.S. $2.6billion) in sales. Sandoz, the generic pharmaceutical division ofNovartis, is already marketing generic enoxaparin, and other genericmanufacturers are also looking to launch their own formulations of thisdrug. 1-5Levaquin, Concerta, and the Johnson & Johnson(Janssen Pharmaceuticals) Product LineJohnson & Johnson had patents expirefor the antipsychotic Risperdal (risperidone) in 2008 and theantiepileptic drug Topamax (topiramate) in 2009. Now it will lose patentprotection on the widely used antibacterial Levaquin and on Concerta(sustained-release formulation of methylphenidate). Concerta is used tocontrol symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) andnarcolepsy and costs up to $236 per month. Levaquin is an antibioticused to treat pneumonia as well as infections of the sinuses, urinarytract, kidneys and skin. In 2010 Levaquin and Concerta had sales of $1.4billion and $1.3 billion worldwide, respectively, together comprising12% of the company's $22.4 billion in pharmaceutical revenues and 4% ofits total $61.6 billion in revenues. Hi-Tech Pharmacal Company. Inc.will inherit the exclusive rights to sell a generic version of theLevaquin solution for 6 months after the patent expiration date.1-5 Singulair and the Merck Product LineMerck has already had to absorb lostrevenue from several major products due to patent expiration or productwithdrawal, including Vioxx (rofecoxib, withdrawn in 2004), Proscar(finasteride, 2005), Fosamax (alendronate, 2008), and, in the past twoyears, Cozaar and Zocor (simvastatin).1-5 Following the losslast year of patent protection for Merck’s cholesterol-lowering drugZocor, sales this year are expected to fall 82% from $4.38 billion in2005. Now the patents on two more of its top sellers—Fosamax andSingulair—will expire in the near future. Combined, Cozaar, Fosamax, andSingulair represented 44% of the company’s annual revenue.1-5Singulair, a leukotriene blocker used as an oral asthma and allergytreatment, was first approved by the FDA in 1998. Its growth has beenconsistent despite the FDA adding warnings to its label about sideeffects including depression and increased suicidal thoughts. In 2010,worldwide sales for Singulair were $5 billion ($3.3 billion in theU.S.), a 7% increase, and nearly 11% of Merck’s total revenue. Now itspatent is due to expire in 2012 and a generic version could be availableas early as August of this year. Merck is also facing patentexpirations in the next several years for its cholesterol-lowering drugsVytorin (ezetimibe/simvastatin) and Zetia (ezetimibe), drugs with totalsales exceeding $2 billion in 2010.1-5 Lexapro and the Forest Laboratories Product LineForest Laboratories’ biggest product, theantidepressant Lexapro, currently accounts for approximately 59% ofcompany sales. In 2010 the U.S. sales for this drug approached $2.5billion, but sales have already been declining as antidepressants fromother companies have come off patent and generics have taken theirplace. Forest’s patent on Lexapro expired in early 2012 and genericproducts are already available. In the near future Forest’s patent onthe Alzheimer’s drug Namenda (memantine) will also
Add Comment