Several rheumatologists say that although the ruling in this case will likely lower costs for patients using this drug, they’re not hopeful that it means pharmaceutical firms will be less aggressive in protecting trademarks.
“Pharma has plenty of lawyers, and they’re going to out-lawyer people most of the time,” Dr. Cohen says. “This is a small victory, but it’s important.”
For its part, the ACR says in a statement that it was proud to have lobbied for “the reintroduction of competition to the colchicine market.”
“The American College of Rheumatology’s interest in this case arose out of support for patient access to safe, effective and affordable rheumatology care,” ACR President E. William St.Clair, MD, says in the statement. “We hope this will serve as a precedent for why the voice of the medical community is a vital component to judicial proceedings that have the potential to affect the public’s access to care.”
>Richard Quinn is a freelance writer in New Jersey.
