The Federal Trade Commission has filed an injuction in federal court seeking to block Amgen's acquisition of fellow drugmaker Horizon Therapeutics.
The FTC said the $27.8 million deal would allow Amgen to use its blockbuster drugs as leverage to pressure insurers and pharmacy benefit managers into favoring Horizon's two monopoly drugs, which don't have any competitors on the market.
Amgen contested these claims and said it remains committed to completing the acquisition.
"We have been working cooperatively over the past several months to address the questions raised by the FTC's investigative staff and believe we have overwhelmingly demonstrated that this combination poses no legitimate competitive issues," the drugmaker said May 16.
Horizon also issued a statement May 16, saying "we firmly believe in the benefits of this acquisition and intend to work with the court on a schedule that would allow the transaction to close by mid-December."
Historically, the FTC has not challenged many deals between drug companies, though the commission has taken a stricter stance on healthcare mergers under the leadership of Chair Lina Khan.
"Today's action — the FTC's first challenge to a pharmaceutical merger in recent memory — sends a clear signal to the market: The FTC won't hesitate to challenge mergers that enable pharmaceutical conglomerates to entrench their monopolies at the expense of consumers and fair competition," FTC Bureau of Competition Director Holly Vedova said in a May 16 news release.
Amgen first shared plans to acquire Horizon in December. If approved, the deal would be the most expensive healthcare acquisition announced in 2022.