Dr. Reddy's 'unlikely' to launch generic Plavix, Sanofi states

PARIS Sanofi-Aventis announced that it believes it is “highly unlikely” that Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories will launch a generic version of its blood-thinning drug Plavix, even though the company has received marketing approval from the Food and Drug Administration for a generic version, according to published reports.

Sanofi-Aventis cited a June 19 U.S. district court ruling stating that Apotex had infringed Sanofi’s clopidogrel patent, the generic name of Plavix, and that imposed an injunction preventing Apotex from selling its own genetic version of the drug.

"We believe that the fact that the permanent injunction has been ordered in the case against Apotex, which is based on the same set of facts related to the same patent rights, makes it highly unlikely that Dr. Reddy's would launch at risk," according to a Sanofi-Aventis spokesman.

A Dr. Reddy's spokesman said: "As the matter is still with the courts, we are waiting for a verdict before deciding on our future course of action."