Business Medical Dialogues
    • facebook
    • twitter
    Login Register
    • facebook
    • twitter
    Login Register
    • Medical Dialogues
    • Speciality Dialogues
    • Education Dialogues
    • Medical Jobs
    • Medical Matrimony
    • MD Brand Connect
    Business Medical Dialogues
    • News
        • Financial Results
        • Hospitals & Diagnostics
        • IT / Health Venture
        • Implants / Devices
        • Insurance
        • Key Movement
        • Pharmaceuticals
        • Policy
        • Technology
        • pharma-news
    • blog
    LoginRegister
    Business Medical Dialogues
    LoginRegister
    • Home
    • News
      • Financial Results
      • Hospitals & Diagnostics
      • IT / Health Venture
      • Implants / Devices
      • Insurance
      • Key Movement
      • Pharmaceuticals
      • Policy
      • Technology
      • pharma-news
    • blog
    • Home
    • Latest News
    • Gilead ordered to pay...

    Gilead ordered to pay Merck $200 mln in hepatitis C drug patent dispute

    Written by savita thakur thakur Published On 2016-03-26T16:26:55+05:30  |  Updated On 26 March 2016 4:26 PM IST
    Gilead ordered to pay Merck $200 mln in hepatitis C drug patent dispute
    New York : A federal jury on Thursday ordered Gilead Sciences Inc to pay Merck & Co $200 million in damages for infringing two Merck patents related to a lucrative cure for hepatitis C.

    The damages award is far less than the $2 billion Merck had demanded. On Tuesday, the same jury in San Jose, California, upheld the validity of the patents, which lie at the heart of the dispute over Gilead's blockbuster drugs Sovaldi and Harvoni. Together the medicines had more than $20 billion in U.S. sales in 2014 and 2015.

    Merck is trying to catch up to Gilead, which dominates the market on a new generation of hepatitis C drugs that can cure well over 90 percent of patients with the liver disease.

    Merck, which in January won approval on its own hepatitis C drug, Zepatier, is also asking for a 10 percent royalty on Gilead's sales going forward. That issue will be argued in a separate non-jury trial before U.S. District Judge Beth Labson Freeman starting next week.

    Gilead spokeswoman Michele Rest said the company does not believe Merck is entitled to any damages. "In the event the judge maintains the jury's verdict, we will appeal," she said.

    In a statement, Merck said, "We are pleased that the jury recognized that patent protections are essential to the development of new medical treatments."

    In after-hours trading, Merck shares were down 50 cents to $52.57. Gilead shares gained slightly.

    Insurers, politicians and patient groups have denounced the list prices of the new drugs. Harvoni, at $1,125 per pill before discounts, costs $94,000 for a 12-week regimen.

    Gilead obtained the active ingredient in its drugs, sofosbuvir, by acquiring Pharmasset, Inc in 2011. Merck said Pharmasset developed the chemical from a Merck patent that was filed in 2002. Gilead, meanwhile, said Merck's patents were derived from Pharmasset's work.

    After Merck, based in Kenilworth, New Jersey, demanded royalties in 2013, Gilead and Merck sued each other in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Last month, Freeman ruled that Gilead's drugs infringe Merck's patents.

    In calculating damages, jurors said they sought a middle ground. "We worked to get to something we could all agree so we weren't hurting one side or the other," juror Cody Shump, a 20-year-old San Jose resident, told Reuters.

    Merck's partner and co-owner of the patents, Ionis Pharmaceuticals Inc, will get 20 percent of the damages awarded Merck.
    Gilead Sciences IncHarvonihepatitis CJudge Beth Labson FreemanMerckSovaldiZepatier
    Source : Reuters

    Disclaimer: This site is primarily intended for healthcare professionals. Any content/information on this website does not replace the advice of medical and/or health professionals and should not be construed as medical/diagnostic advice/endorsement or prescription. Use of this site is subject to our terms of use, privacy policy, advertisement policy. © 2020 Minerva Medical Treatment Pvt Ltd

    savita thakur thakur
    savita thakur thakur
      Show Full Article
      Next Story
      Similar Posts
      NO DATA FOUND

      Popular Stories

      • Email: info@medicaldialogues.in
      • Phone: 011 - 4372 0751

      Website Last Updated On : 13 Oct 2022 5:14 AM GMT
      Company
      • About Us
      • Contact Us
      • Our Team
      • Reach our Editor
      • Feedback
      • Submit Article
      Ads & Legal
      • Advertise
      • Advertise Policy
      • Terms and Conditions
      • Privacy Policy
      • Editorial Policy
      • Comments Policy
      • Disclamier
      Medical Dialogues is health news portal designed to update medical and healthcare professionals but does not limit/block other interested parties from accessing our general health content. The health content on Medical Dialogues and its subdomains is created and/or edited by our expert team, that includes doctors, healthcare researchers and scientific writers, who review all medical information to keep them in line with the latest evidence-based medical information and accepted health guidelines by established medical organisations of the world.

      Any content/information on this website does not replace the advice of medical and/or health professionals and should not be construed as medical/diagnostic advice/endorsement or prescription.Use of this site is subject to our terms of use, privacy policy, advertisement policy. You can check out disclaimers here. © 2025 Minerva Medical Treatment Pvt Ltd

      © 2025 - Medical Dialogues. All Rights Reserved.
      Powered By: Hocalwire
      X
      We use cookies for analytics, advertising and to improve our site. You agree to our use of cookies by continuing to use our site. To know more, see our Cookie Policy and Cookie Settings.Ok