US bans DRL drug over usage of purple

 

In a statement to BSE on Tuesday, the company said it “has been aware of an order passed by the District of Delaware, USA, granting a Temporary Restraining Order, with immediate effect on sales, delivery, transfer, or other deposition of its generic esomeprazole product in the US market.”

 

The order, the company said, came about as a result of a motion moved by AstraZeneca objecting to the usage of the colour purple in the said product. AstraZeneca argued that the purple pills (Prilosec and nexium) have been famous for many years through its extensive advertising both to doctors and patients, industry-leading commercial success, and extensive publicity, among other reasons.

 

DRl launched Nexium in September after weeks of delay, as it had to shift production to a different plant after the US Food and Drug Administration found quality control lapses at the original site.

 

Nexium raked in about $1.93 billion in sales for AstraZeneca in the nine months to September 2015. According to analyst note in September, the drug was expected to add about $25 to $35 million to Dr Reddy’s fiscal 2016 profit after tax.