J&J Defeats Bid to Undo Arbitration Order in Remicade Case

Johnson & Johnson doesn’t have to face a redo of claims that it delayed competition for its anti-inflammatory Remicade, the Third Circuit held Oct. 21, five weeks after sending the case to arbitration.

The proposed antitrust class action accused the drugmaker and its subsidiary Janssen Biotech Inc. of using product bundling and exclusionary contracts to block insurers from covering “biosimilar” versions of Remicade.

Biosimilars are essentially generic versions of “biologic” drugs like Remicade, which are derived from living organisms or tissues, unlike chemically synthesized pharmaceuticals. Remicade is used to treat rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn’s disease.

The scheme gave J&J an ...