Horizon Loses Patent Ruling to Alkem on Duexis Arthritis Drug

A federal judge dismissed a claim against generic-drug maker Alkem, ruling that a Horizon patent for Duexis, a medication used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, shouldn’t have been issued.

• U.S. District Judge Richard Andrews rejected Horizon’s contentions that its invention wasn’t obvious, in opinion issued Monday in federal court in Wilmington, Delaware
• Patent expires in 2026: FDA Orange Book
• Patent covers stable compositions of famotidine and ibuprofen in a single dosage form
• Horizon sued Alkem in July 2018, alleging infringement of six patents; the case was winnowed to one patent before the September bench trial
• CASE: Horizon Medicines LLC v. ...