Federal court has invalidated a patent that would have offered Pfizer an additional 18 months of U.S. exclusivity for its blockbuster painkiller, Celebrex.
The drug's basic chemical compound patent, for celecoxib, the key API in Celebrex, lapses on May 30, 2014. Generic companies including Teva and Mylan have sought approval to sell their cheaper versions at that point. But Pfizer, in its full-year 2014 profit forecast, had assumed Celebrex would maintain its U.S. marketing exclusivity through December 2, 2015.
Pfizer plans to appeal the court decision.
Read the Reuters press release.