Reacting to the US Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) move for a temporary restraining order, Amgen has agreed not to close its nearly $28 billion acquisition of Horizon Therapeutics until the courts have ruled on the agency’s  case.

Last week, the FTC moved to try to block the the deal, asserting in its appeal to an Illinois federal court that this would allow Amgen to pressure insurers and pharmacy benefit managers into accepting high prices, in particular for Horizon’s thyroid eye disease drug Tepezza and gout treatment Krystexxa.

Barring a quick decision by the court on the injunction request, the companies said they now do not expect to complete the acquisition before Sept. 15. When announcing the plans in December 2022, Amgen said it expected the transaction to be wrapped up during the first half of 2023.

When filing for the injunction, the trade authority asserted that Amgen has a history of agreeing bundling schemes for important drugs with payers and pharmacy benefit managers, a practice the regulatory authority has not succeeding in cracking down on.

While calling the FTC’s assumption “speculative,” the drumaker said it would not deploy such practices if the Horizon buyout was allowed to go through.

Weighing in on the governmental challenge, which is unprecedented, industry insiders said they did not expect the agency to succeed.

Speaking to US trade journal Fierce Pharma, analysts for SVB Securities said the FTC was ”frustrated” because  Congress has not enacted stronger laws and “is making this play to effect change.”

However, they said the agency could have difficulty arguing against a bundling system that while bolstering the monopoly power of one drug may also provide key drugs at less cost and can lead to lower prices.

Author: Dede Williams, Freelance Journalist