LDN - Health and Fitness

Indivior temporarily stops rival Alvogen's generic launch

[January 25, 2019] (Reuters) - Indivior Plc said on Friday a U.S. district court had granted the British drugmaker a temporary restraining order, stopping rival Alvogen from launching cut-price versions of its blockbuster opioid addiction treatment.

Indivior, which makes opioid addiction treatment Suboxone Film, said in March it would fight a U.S. court ruling that allowed Alvogen to launch a rival to its major product.

The temporary restraining order from the Court for the District of New Jersey will remain in place until Feb. 7 and a preliminary injunction hearing will take place on that day, Indivior said.

"We will continue to vigorously pursue our infringement cases against Alvogen to protect our SUBOXONE (buprenorphine and naloxone) Sublingual Film patent portfolio," Chief Executive Officer Shaun Thaxter said.

Indivior has said it could launch a cheaper version of its blockbuster opioid addiction treatment, if rivals release generic versions of the drug.

Generic rivals in tablet form are already on the market in the United States, which is grappling with an opioid addiction epidemic. But Suboxone Film leads the market for a version which is placed under the tongue to suppress cravings.

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The drugmaker, spun off from consumer products group Reckitt Benckiser in 2014, is also looking to reduce its dependence on Suboxone, which accounts for about 80 percent of its revenue, by focusing on another opioid addiction drug Sublocade and schizophrenia treatment Perseris.

Last month, Indivior won a fresh hold against a knock-off version from Dr. Reddy's Laboratories, while Teva Pharmaceuticals said in September it would hold off launching its version until Indivior's other cases were resolved.

(Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)

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