The regulator alleges the company marketed a generic version of Jardiance before the patent on the original drug expired.
Russia’s Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) has opened an antitrust case against pharmaceutical company Groteks (Solopharm) over the launch of its generic drug Emforix before the expiry of a patent covering its active ingredient, empagliflozin.
Boehringer Ingelheim and a representative of the patent holder, which owns the rights to the empagliflozin patent, filed a complaint with the FAS. The substance is used in Jardiance, manufactured by Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH & Co. The patent is due to expire in November 2029.
According to the FAS, Groteks marketed Emforix, a drug used to treat diabetes containing the same active ingredient, before the patent on the original drug expired and without the consent of patent holder Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH.
The FAS commission will examine Groteks’s actions for compliance with Article 14.5 of Russia’s Competition Law No. 135-FZ, which prohibits certain forms of unfair competition.
Source: FAS
