Category Archives: Drug Companies

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Medtronic ordered by jury to pay $106.5M to Colibri over TAVR patent infringement

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Nick Paul Taylor Contributor

Dive Brief:

  •  Medtronic was ordered by a jury to pay $106.5 million for infringing a transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) patent.
  • Colibri Heart Valve filed a lawsuit against Medtronic in 2019, accused it of infringing two patents related to the delivery and controlled release of replacement heart valves, according to court filings.
  • The federal jury convened in California to cover the case sided with Colibri, concluding that three of Medtronic’s Evolut systems induce doctors to infringe a patent, it added.

Dive Insight:

Colibri developed a “self-expanding heart valve device that includes cross-linked biological tissue and a delivery system that can be guided through a patient’s artery to the heart where it is positioned and used to replace diseased valves,” according to a lawsuit it filed in 2020 in a California federal court.

In its lawsuit, Colorado-based Colibri used identical language to describe Medtronic’s TAVR devices and argued the portfolio infringes its patents. 

Colibri said that its CEO, Joseph Horn, gave a presentation to Medtronic employees in May 2014 under a nondisclosure agreement. Horn’s presentation covered Colibri’s heart valve products, delivery systems and methods. Medtronic brought a CoreValve TAVR system to market in 2014 and went on to release several upgrades. Colibri’s lawsuit notes similarities between Medtronic’s devices and its patents.  

The jury ruled that Medtronic must pay Colibri $106.5 million for patent infringement.

“Medtronic strongly disagrees with the ruling and will continue to vigorously defend against these allegations at the appellate level,” a company spokesperson rote in an emailed statement. “In the meantime, Colibri’s patent has no impact on ongoing operations, as the patent expired in January 2022.”

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Oklahoma AG announces 4 new opioid settlements worth $226M

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma entered settlement agreements with three major pharmacy chains and an opioid manufacturer totaling more than $226 million, Attorney General John O’Connor announced Wednesday.

Including the new settlements with drugmaker Allergan and pharmacy chains CVS, Walgreens and Walmart, Oklahoma has received more than $900 million from opioid makers and distributors to help address the state’s opioid crisis, O’Connor said.

“The opioid crisis has inflicted unspeakable pain on Oklahoma families and caused the deaths of thousands of Oklahomans,” O’Connor said in a statement. “Between 2016 and 2020, more than 3,000 Oklahomans died from opioid overdoses.”

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Justice Department files suit against one of largest drug distributors in U.S.

The Justice Department on Thursday filed a civil lawsuit against AmerisourceBergen Corp., one of the largest drug distributors in the country, alleging that it failed to report “at least hundreds of thousands” suspicious opioid orders to the Drug Enforcement Agency.

Under the Controlled Substances Act, pharmaceutical distributors must monitor the orders they receive for controlled substances, and are required to flag any they deem suspicious to the DEA. According to the filing, AmerisourceBergen repeatedly failed to do so since 2014, despite being made aware of significant “red flags” at pharmacies across the country.

“In the midst of a catastrophic opioid epidemic AmerisourceBergen allegedly altered its internal systems in a way that reduced the number of orders that would be flagged as suspicious. And even up to the orders that AmerisourceBergen identified as suspicious, the company routinely failed to report those suspicious orders,” Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta said during a call with members of the media on Thursday. “In short, the government’s complaint alleges that for years AmerisourceBergen prioritized profits over its legal obligations and over Americans’ well-being.”

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‘Genetic Paparazzi’ Could Steal Celebrity DNA For Dark Purposes, Professor Warns

Celebrity fans can sometimes be passionate and bordering on crazy, and now there’s a worry that infatuation could get more obsessive and even sinister.

Experts are now warning against ‘genetic paparazzi’ and the potential rise of ‘celebrity DNA theft’. Yes that’s right, actual stealing of DNA.

Law professors from Georgia State University and the University of Maryland are now arguing that ‘genetic paparazzi’ could soon be coming after the DNA of public figures, including celebrities and politicians.

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Teva faces $100M lawsuit from Israel over unpaid Copaxone royalties: report

Teva Pharmaceuticals’ big-selling multiple sclerosis drug Copaxone is losing ground in the U.S. thanks to generics, but the medicine was once the company’s primary growth driver. Now, it’s at the center of a lawsuit filed by the state of Israel over alleged unpaid royalties.

Israel has sued Teva for $100 million in royalties on the longer-lasting version of the medicine, Globes reports. While Teva owns Copaxone marketing rights, scientists at the Weizmann Institute of Science developed the medicine, the publication reports. 

When the original daily version, first approved in the U.S. in 1996, neared its patent expiration, the company switched its efforts to a longer-acting version. In its lawsuit, Israel claims government scientists at the Weizmann Institute developed the long-acting version as well, so it’s owed royalties.

“The state has no alternative but to take legal action against Teva to ensure that it receives suitable remuneration for using public resources that brought Teva very large scale revenue,” the suit says, according to Globes. 

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