
The Supreme Court has ruled against generic drugmaker
Mylan Inc. and other firms in their challenge of Teva Pharmaceutical
Industries' patents for a blockbuster multiple sclerosis drug.
The justices ruled 7-2 that a federal appeals court
wrongly overturned five of Teva's patents for the drug Copaxone, which
generates about $4 billion in annual sales for Teva. The majority told a lower
court to reconsider a ruling invalidating the patents.
The decision allows the Israel-based company to keep its exclusive rights to Copaxone until September, delaying generic competition from Mylan and the other companies. And it gives Teva more time to shift patients to a longer acting version that won't face competition until 2030.
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