Impax to divest 10 products amid acquisition by Amneal

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is requiring Impax to divest rights and assets for ten products, as part of a settlement resolving charges that Amneal’s $1.45 billion acquisition would be anti-competitive.

In October last year, Amneal and Impax announced plans to merge, in a deal the companies said will create the fifth largest generics drugs business in the US.

On Friday, April 27, the FTC announced that under the terms of the proposed settlement, ANI Pharmaceuticals will acquire seven products.

These include the rights and assets for generic aspirin and dipyridamole ER capsules—antiplatelet therapies used to reduce the risk of stroke.

They also include rights for methylphenidate hydrochloride extended-release tablets, which are central nervous system stimulants used to treat attention-deficit disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.

Perrigo Company, a manufacturer of private label over-the-counter pharmaceuticals, will acquire Impax’s rights to two products that it had partnered with Impax to develop, manufacture, and sell.

G&W Laboratories will acquire Impax’s marketing rights to a generic fluocinonide-E cream product (a topical corticosteroid) that G&W manufactures for Impax.

According to the FTC, without a remedy, the acquisition would probably harm future competition in US markets for seven of the generic products and harm current competition for three of the products.

The FTC added that the entry of new competitors would not be “timely, likely, or sufficient in magnitude to deter or counteract the anti-competitive effects of the acquisition”.

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