Amgen’s acquisition of Horizon Therapeutics was announced in December and the Federal Trade Commission sued in May, its first federal court challenge to a pharmaceutical deal since 2009.
(Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)
By Leah Nylen
Bloomberg
Sept. 1, 2023 8:12 AM PT
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Amgen can move forward with its $27.8-billion takeover of Horizon Therapeutics after the U.S. Federal Trade Commission said Friday that it had accepted a binding settlement that the combined company won’t bundle together two of Horizon’s blockbuster drugs.
The acquisition — Amgen’s largest ever — was announced in December and the FTC sued in May, its first federal court challenge to a pharmaceutical deal since 2009. The settlement will avoid an injunction hearing that was set to begin Sept. 13 in Chicago federal court.
Horizon shares rose 2.9% in premarket trading on the news. Seagen, whose deal to be bought by Pfizer is also under FTC review, rose 2.4% in premarket trading.
In a statement, Amgen said it will quickly seek the final approvals required under Irish law and anticipates closing the deal later this year.
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The FTC under Chair Lina Khan has challenged a number of high-profile mergers and has struggled in court recently, losing cases to block a Meta Platforms acquisition and Microsoft’s Activision Blizzard deal. The Amgen settlement is the second the agency has accepted in the wake of those defeats.
“Today’s proposed resolution sends a clear signal that the FTC and its state partners will scrutinize pharmaceutical mergers that enable such practices, and defend patients and competition in this vital marketplace,” Henry Liu, the director of the FTC’s Bureau of Competition, said in a statement.
Under the terms of the deal, Amgen said it wouldn’t bundle its drugs with Horizon’s monopoly medications Tepezza, used to treat thyroid eye disease, and Krystexxa, for chronic refractory gout. The company agreed not to acquire any additional treatments for those diseases without prior approval from the commission. It also agreed to a monitor for the next 15 years who will oversee all contracts with insurers related to coverage of the two drugs.
In a separate statement, the FTC’s Khan said the agency agreed to a settlement in this case because it involved so-called orphan drugs — treatments for rare medical conditions that are regulated differently — and will be easy to monitor.
The FTC will “continue to challenge unlawful practices that raise drug prices, inhibit access, stifle innovation or otherwise hurt patients,” she said.
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The FTC had argued in its suit to block the Amgen deal that it would entrench Horizon’s monopoly on the drugs, which don’t face competition. In 2022, those two medications resulted in about $2.69 billion in revenue for Horizon, according to company filings.
Amgen has 27 approved drugs, including blockbuster treatments such as Enbrel for rheumatoid arthritis and Otezla for psoriasis.
The FTC and European antitrust authorities are also reviewing Pfizer’s Seagen acquisition, one of the largest deals of the year. The U.S. agency opened an in-depth probe of that deal in July.