Actavis Experiences Drug Shortage For Alzheimer's Drug
By Lori Clapper
Actavis is struggling to supply its Alzheimer’s drug Namenda, after demand skyrocketed following the promotion of a slow-release version of the medicine ahead of the traditional pill’s patent expiration. In light of the high number of patients switching to the slow-release pill, Actavis decided to keeping selling the five-mg and ten-mg doses of the traditional pill through the end of the year, even though the company had originally planned to stop marketing the drug last month, according to the website Bidness Etc.
In the meantime, David Belian, an Actavis spokesman told Bloomberg, “We’re working as fast as we can to fix supply for the XR version,” he added, however he did not disclose any details regarding when the Dublin-based company would find a solution to the supply shortage of the slow-release med Namenda XR.
Belian said the company’s patents for both the five and 10 mg doses of Namenda expire in October 2015, however a number of generic drug manufacturers could start selling off-brand versions three months prior to that.
Actavis inherited the Alzheimer’s med in its $28 billion acquisition of Forest Laboratories, which closed in July. The latest patent on Namenda XR extends through September 2029.
Namenda XR has the potential to generate $415 million in 2014 sales for Actavis, which is only about half of a “normal year” because the merger closed mid-year. In 2015, the company stands to gain $1.24 billion in 2015, said Randall Stanicky, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets.
Industry experts expect to see the combined business of Actavis and Forest Laboratories to generate $15 billion in revenue in 2015.
The Forest Laboratories deal marked the seventh acquisition for Actavis since January of last year, including Silom Medical Company in April and Furiex Pharmaceuticals in July.