[Pharm-policy] AstraZeneca To Appeal Omeprazole Patent Ruling

[James Love]

AstraZeneca loses Australia suit on formulation patent, over lack of
novelty.  Jamie


October 9, 2000

AstraZeneca To Appeal Omeprazole Patent Ruling

Dow Jones Newswires

LONDON -- Drug company AstraZeneca PLC (AZN) said Monday that it will
appeal against a Sydney court ruling which found against the company in
a dispute with U.S. generic pharmaceutical company Alphapharm Pty
Ltd.(ALO) about the formulation patent for omeprazole.

Omeprazole is a substance used in the drug Losec, a treatment for
acid-related disorders, such as peptic ulcers.

A company spokeswoman said the Sydney court ruled the formulation "did
not have basic novelty" and was therefore not a patent that could be
defended.

   [snip]

The company said the substance patent for Losec expired in Australia on
April 11 1999. In most countries, however, it has been granted Patent
Term Extensions or Supplementary Patent Certificates over the drug.

This extended coverage for the patent is valid in the U.S. until 2001,
in most European countries until 2002 to 2004 and in Japan until 2004.

Sales of Losec in Australia in 1999 amounted to approximately $100
million, which is under 2% of the total sales of the product.

                 -By Joyanta Acharjee, Dow Jones Newswires;
44-20-7842-9327;
                 joyanta.acharjee@dowjones.com

-- 
James Love  mailto:love@cptech.org http://www.cptech.org
Consumer Project on Technology, P.O. Box 19367, Washington, DC 20036
voice 1.202.387.8030  fax  1.202.234.5176