The Federal Court (FC) has upheld the validity of a patent concerning treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and granted injunctive relief against the generic in an infringement action under section 6 of the Patented Medicines
Life sciences and healthcare
Drug pricing: PMPRB announces next steps in Guidelines consultation
The Patented Medicine Prices Review Board (PMPRB) has announced new details regarding the progress of its consultation on new price review Guidelines.
Phase 2: Discussion Guide
The next phase of the PMPRB’s consultation will begin in summer 2024…
Pharma in Brief’s 2023 Year in Review and Trends for 2024
As you start the new year, allow us to recap 2023’s important legal and regulatory developments for Canadian pharma. We also flag what to watch out for in 2024.
The most significant legal development in 2023 was the introduction of…
New Canadian Drug Agency formed, while National Pharmacare bill is delayed into 2024
The Government of Canada has announced the creation of the Canadian Drug Agency (CDA). According to the government, the CDA “will provide the dedicated leadership and coordination needed to make Canada’s drug system more sustainable and better prepared…
Thirty years of the Patented Medicines (Notice of Compliance) Regulations
This year marks the 30-year anniversary of the Patented Medicines (Notice of Compliance) Regulations (Regulations), introduced in 1993 to prevent patent infringement by linking the regulatory approval of generic or biosimilar drugs with the patent rights of innovators. …
What is a natural health product? Health Canada’s findings upheld by Federal Courts
In recent months, the Federal Courts have twice upheld Health Canada’s findings as to what is, and is not, a natural health product. The Courts’ decisions provide insight into how natural health products are distinguished, under federal law, from cosmetics…
Drug pricing: PMPRB finalizes Interim Guidance amendments
The Patented Medicine Prices Review Board (PMPRB) has amended its Interim Guidance to address prices of “New Medicines”, implementing a review threshold based on “below the median” of the PMPRB11 countries (Median International Price, MIP). “New Medicines”…
Federal Court finds that Health Canada breached procedural fairness by relying on an undisclosed internal guidance document
On August 8, 2023, the Federal Court overturned Health Canada’s decision that a cannabis product, Edison Jolts, was to be classified as edible cannabis and not cannabis extract. The Court found that Health Canada had breached the duty of procedural…
PMPRB Update: Consultation on Amendment to the Interim Guidance re New Medicines
The Patented Medicine Prices Review Board (PMPRB) has launched a 60-day consultation on proposed changes to the price-review process set out in its Interim Guidance of August 18, 2022 (Interim Guidance). The proposed changes would affect…