Patent settlements between brand and generic drug makers commonly referred to as "pay-for-delay" settlements are not necessarily against the law, the Supreme Court ruled Monday.

The year is only halfway done, but 2013 is already proving to be a year of particular importance for generic drugs as the industry awaits two important decisions from the Supreme Court and continues to wait for federal biosimilar regulations while fending off efforts to limit the scope of their use at the state level.

Just a week after the Supreme Court heard the Federal Trade Commission's lawsuit over its deal with AbbVie to sell a generic version of a testosterone-replacement therapy, Actavis is challenging the patent on another strength of the drug.

The question of whether a generic drug company can be held liable for harmful side effects from its medicines goes before the Supreme Court Tuesday in a case involving a New Hampshire woman who sustained several injuries after taking a generic pain drug.

The Supreme Court will hear arguments later this month in a case that could determine the future of many patent settlements between brand and generic drug makers.

In an effort to quell the significant sway creditors wield in dictating terms with retail vendors, the National Community Pharmacists Association, the National Grocers Association and the National Association of Convenience Stores on Monday submitted a joint brief to the Supreme Court as amici curiae in the case of American Express vs. Italian Colors Restaurant.

Drug maker Otsuka Pharmaceuticals can keep generic versions of its schizophrenia drug off the market, according to published reports.

Unilever’s Simple facial skin care brand has teamed up with AOL to announce the winners of a nationwide search for extraordinary women driving positive change in their communities.

As of Sept. 15, California became the eighth state in which Amazon.com will levy sales taxes on purchases made by residents in that state. Pennsylvania joined that group two weeks prior. Add to that the five states that don’t have any sales taxes, and that’s 13 states where national brick-and-click retailers are competing on a level playing field with the pure-play online retail juggernaut. 


The 2012 elections mean a lot of things to a lot of people, communities and industries, and retail pharmacy is no exception.

They say hindsight is 20/20. With the Supreme Court’s ruling on healthcare reform, the luxury of looking back shows that the National Association of Chain Drug Stores and allies took the right course to battle the pharmacy Medicaid cuts of the Deficit Reduction Act. What we learned should inspire pharmacy to remain tenacious in its continued advocacy on this issue and in confronting all other challenges.

A new study from Harvard School of Public Health found that expanding Medicaid to low-income adults led to improved health and reduced mortality. It is the first published study to look specifically at the effect of recent state Medicaid expansions on mortality among low-income adults.