The Federal Court of Appeal has affirmed one of the last judgments granting a prohibition order under subsection 6(1) of the pre-September 2017 Patented Medicines (Notice of Compliance) Regulations (the PM(NOC) Regulations). The Court of Appeal upheld the prohibition
Sarah Pennington
Bill C-213, An Act to enact the Canada Pharmacare Act: rejected by Parliament
On February 24, 2021, Parliament voted down Bill C-213, which would have enacted the Canada Pharmacare Act. The Private Member’s Bill was first introduced a year ago, re-introduced in September 2020 after Parliament’s prorogation, and defeated at Second…
Divided success in PM(NOC) actions regarding glatiramer acetate
The Federal Court has decided two infringement actions concerning glatiramer acetate products under the Patented Medicines (Notice of Compliance) Regulations (the Regulations). The Court dismissed allegations of anticipation based upon “speculative” prior art and rejected an argument that there…
Health Canada finalizes regulations relating to sale of unapproved drugs for emergency treatment under the Special Access Program
Regulatory amendments to the Food and Drug Regulations (FDR) and the Natural Health Products Regulations (NHPR) were published in Canada Gazette (Part II) on October 14, 2020. We previously reported on these changes, which seek to…
New Interim Order to address COVID-19-related drug shortages in Canada
On October 16, 2020, the Minister of Health (the Minister) signed the Interim Order Respecting the Prevention and Alleviation of Shortages of Drugs in Relation to Covid-19 (the IO), which introduces new tools for the Minister to address…
National Pharmacare Update
On September 23, 2020, the government identified national pharmacare, a national program to fund prescription drugs in Canada, as a continued priority in the Speech from the Throne (the Speech) to open the Second Session of the 43rd Parliament…
Health Canada collaborates with international partners to address pandemic
Health Canada recently published a notice to industry detailing its collaborations with international partners during the COVID-19 pandemic. These cooperative efforts aim to ensure that Canadians’ health product needs are being met quickly and effectively during the outbreak, and that…
Health Canada releases Guidance Document addressing the Plain Language Labelling Regulations requirements for non-prescription drug products
Health Canada recently published a new Guidance Document that provides information on how Health Canada interprets and applies the 2014 Regulations Amending the Food and Drug Regulations (Labelling, Packaging and Brand Names of Drugs for Human Use) (colloquially known as…
Apotex held to induce infringement in one of the last applications under the old PM(NOC) Regulations
The Federal Court has granted an order prohibiting the Minister of Health from issuing a Notice of Compliance to Apotex Inc. for a generic version of ZYTIGA (abiraterone acetate). It held that the use of the combination of abiraterone acetate…