Catalyst Pharmaceuticals Files Federal Lawsuit against FDA

Catalyst Pharmaceuticals has filed a suit against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and several related parties challenging the recent approval of a new drug application and related drug labeling for Jacobus Pharmaceutical Company’s drug Ruzurgi™ for the treatment of Lambert-Eaton Myasthenic Syndrome (LEMS) in pediatric patients. The complaint was filed today in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

The complaint alleges that the defendants’ approval of Ruzurgi violated multiple provisions of FDA regulations regarding labeling, resulting in misbranding in violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA); violated Catalyst’s statutory rights to Orphan Drug Exclusivity and to New Chemical Entity Exclusivity under the FDCA; and was in multiple other respects arbitrary, capricious, and contrary to law, in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act. Among other remedies, the suit seeks an order vacating the FDA's approval of Ruzurgi.

"New chemical entities (drugs) are required to go through the full drug approval process which requires demonstration of safety and efficacy," said Patrick J. McEnany, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. "We believe the FDA has misapplied its regulations, contradicting decades of precedent and has undercut Catalyst’s orphan drug exclusivity. We are compelled to bring this action, to preserve the specialized regulatory framework provided by the Orphan Drug legislation, and the prospect of future rare disease drug development for all rare disease patients in need of an approved treatment."

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