Teva, Barr merger results in release of drugs to Watson

CORONA, Calif. The merger between Teva Pharmaceutical Industries and Barr Pharmaceuticals will result in the companies divesting several drugs, and Watson Pharmaceuticals has agreed to acquire them, the Corona, Calif.-based drug maker announced Tuesday.

The portfolio comprises 17 drugs, including 15 that have Food and Drug Administration approval and two in development.

“These products represent a sound complement to our extensive generics portfolio,” Watson president and chief executive Paul Bisaro said in a statement. “We anticipate these new generics will have immediate value that we will begin to realize in early 2009.”

Key drugs include desmopressin acetate, a diabetes insipidus treatment, glipizide and metformin hydrochloride tablets, for treating Type 2 diabetes, and metoclopramide hydrochloride tablets, a treatment for gastroesophageal reflux disorder.

Watson said that it will pay $36 million upfront for the portfolio of 17 drugs from Teva.