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French Authority Fines J&J €25 Million for Blocking Generics

December 22, 2017

The French Competition Authority fined Johnson & Johnson €25 million ($27 million) for delaying market access to generic copies of its painkiller Durogesic, a fentanyl-based patch for treatment of chronic and severe pain.

The French agency said J&J delayed the arrival of generic copies of Durogesic to the market for several months by convincing the French Agency for Medical Safety of Health Products to deny national-level generic status to competing products, although the products were already approved as generics by the European Commission.

The agency also claims J&J conducted a “smear” campaign to discredit generic versions of Durogesic by “creating doubt in the minds of healthcare professionals regarding their effectiveness and safety,” and that the campaign succeeded in misleading medical practitioners about the risks associated with substitution of generics for Durogesic and their subsequent liability.

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