A US District Court’s decision to postpone the trial of Teva Pharmaceuticals for Medicare fraud, which was originally planned to take place in September, suggests Teva may yet be able to achieve summary judgement in this case. This decision represents an initial positive outcome for Teva in one of the key ongoing legal battles surrounding the Israel-based multinational pharmaceutical company part-owned by Pfizer, says GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

Jay Patel, Pharma Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “Teva Pharmaceuticals currently faces case from the US government. The postponement of the trial is the first significant legal victory that Teva has had in the case so far, after losing its July bid for summary judgement, which would have avoided a trial altogether and resulted in a speedy decision in Teva’s favor.

“Although the ultimate outcome remains to be seen, the latest decision suggests that Teva could successfully argue that there is insufficient causation between the payments made by Teva and the Medicare co-payment coverage provided on appeal.”

The US government had accused Teva of paying kickbacks to patient foundations to provide Medicare co-payment coverage for its multiple sclerosis drug Copaxone (Glatiramer acetate). GlobalData sales forecasts indicate that there were $387 million in Copaxone sales annually from 2000 to 2022 in the US.

Patel concludes: “Should Teva be able to overcome this Copaxone case, it will be able to further strengthen its position as the world’s leading generics manufacturer. The US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, which will decide Teva’s appeal, previously showed willingness to support dismissal of legal actions against pharmaceutical companies claiming Medicare fraud in United States v. Bahler Medical. Nevertheless, even a victory in this case will not fully alleviate Teva’s legal challenges, with the company facing a separate US antitrust trial over alleged price-fixing of the cardiovascular drug pravastatin with other generics manufacturers in 2024.”