Generics file Teva response in Copaxone battle

A group of generic drug manufacturers has asked the US Supreme Court to allow a ruling that grants them permission to market a version of Teva’s multiple sclerosis drug Copaxone (glatiramer acetate).

The application, made by Sandoz, Momenta Pharmaceuticals, Mylan and Natco Pharma, was in response to Teva’s request to the Supreme Court last week to stay a ruling that would block the release of a Copaxone generic.

The case dates back to July last year, when the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit invalidated a patent covering Copaxone.

The Federal Circuit’s decision allowed the generic drug makers to enter the market with their own products on May 24 this year, the day Teva’s remaining patents for its lucrative drug expire.

On March 31, the court agreed to hear Teva’s appeal against the decision.

However, the court will only hear the case after October, by which point the competitor’s product could have been available for several months. A final ruling in the case could come as late as June 2015.

In a joint filing, the companies said that Teva had not shown it would suffer irreparable harm if a stay was not issued.

Copaxone is one of Teva’s most lucrative drugs and makes around $4.3 billion per year.

The Supreme Court could announce at any time whether it will grant the request.