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The Washington Post on Monday examined how "an intragovernmental dispute" between the Federal Trade Commission and the antitrust division of the Justice Department over so-called "reverse-payments" -- agreements in which brand-name drug companies pay generic drug manufacturers to delay introduction of their medications -- "has become an annual event" before the Supreme Court. According to the Post, FTC "thinks that the practice violates antitrust laws and costs consumers billions in higher drug prices." In addition, FTC says such agreements, also called "exclusion payment settlements," go against the intentions of the Hatch-Waxman Act of 1984, which was meant to accelerate the market entry of generic drugs. Drug companies say that not "all settlements of what could be protracted and expensive legislation are suspect," and two circuit courts of appeals have deemed the settlements legitimate thus far, according to the Post. The Justice Department for the second straight year "has told the Supreme Court that it does not believe the case at hand is an 'attractive vehicle' for exploring the issue," the Post reports. A brief from the solicitor general reads, "The federal antitrust claims in this case appear to be moot, the factual setting is atypical and unlikely to recur, and subsequent regulatory changes may undercut one of the theories of competitive harm advanced by petitioners." FTC Commissioner Jon Leibowitz said, "We're obviously very disappointed, because we think it's one of the most important cases for consumers presented to the court this year" (Barnes, Washington Post, 6/4). "Reprinted with permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
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