By: Lionel Frank
On July 23rd, the U.S. Department of Justice, Antitrust Division, approved a request from Eli Lilly and Company, AbCellera Biologics, Amgen, AstraZeneca, Genentech, and GlaxoSmithKline, to share information about manufacturing facilities and other relevant information that they say could expedite the production of monoclonal antibody treatments to treat COVID-19.
The approval to share competitive information was based upon a determination by the Antitrust Division that the demand for monoclonal antibodies targeting COVID-19 is likely to exceed what a single pharmaceutical firm could produce on its own. The approval also noted that regulatory approval of specific treatments before scaling up manufacturing might delay access to life-saving medicines by many months.
The six companies sought specific approval to share information about their manufacturing facilities, capacity, raw materials and supplies that could be used to produce COVID-19 monoclonal antibody treatments as soon as possible once such treatments are proven to be safe and effective. To protect against basic antitrust concerns, the companies will not exchange information about the prices of treatments or the cost of production of those treatments.
Szaferman Lakind can advise clients who may be interested in partnering with others in their industry to develop products to fight against COVID-19, or where other joint undertakings may produce efficiencies without reducing competition among producers of various goods and services.
Please note that the content of this blog is provided for information and education only. Nothing stated herein is intended to create an attorney client relationship or to constitute legal advice.
Lionel Frank is a partner with Szaferman Lakind and a member of the Business Department. He focuses his practice on anti-trust and intellectual property matters. To contact Lionel please email him at lfrank@szaferman.com or call 609.275.0400.
