Federal Court Decides Against AstraZeneca in IRA Challenge

In a likely boost to Joe Biden’s affection for Delaware, a federal judge in U.S. District Court there Friday handed a victory to the President’s much-challenged Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), in another setback for big pharma in challenging the Medicare Part D drug pricing program.

Judge Colm Connolly threw out AstraZeneca’s lawsuit contesting provisions of the IRA that the drugmaker claims would harm its constitutional rights, and that the law’s negotiated price cuts would interfere with future research and development.

U.K.-based AstraZeneca launched the lawsuit after its diabetes, heart and kidney drug Farxiga (dapagliflozin) was included last August among the ten drugs Medicare selected for the opening round of price negotiations under the IRA. The company also claimed the negotiations would result in it having to sell its drugs at below-market rate discounts.

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