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US Federal Trade Commission files injunction to halt CSL acquisition of Talecris Biotherapeutics
Dow Jones Newswire
WASHINGTON—The US Federal Trade Commission announced Wednesday it will seek to block a proposed $3.1 billion acquisition of Talecris Biotherapeutics by Australia’s CSL Ltd., claiming the deal would substantially reduce competition in the US market for plasma protein therapies.
“Now more than ever, it is critical that consumers benefit from vigorous competition in the health-care sector,” Richard Feinstein, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Competition, said in a statement. Substantial consolidation has already occurred in the plasma protein industry, and Feinstein said the proposed acquisition would “increase the likelihood of collusion.”
The FTC’s complaint and request for a preliminary injunction, filed in federal district court in Washington, DC, said reduced competition could drive up prices and harm patients.
The case centers on four therapies – Immune globulin (Ig), Albumin, Rho-D, and Alpha-1 protein – used to treat patients with immunodeficiency diseases, chronic inflammatory polyneuropathy, alpha-1 antitrypsin dificiency, and newborns with hemolytic disease.
CSL, of Victoria, Australia, the world’s second-largest supplier of such therapies, is seeking to acquire Talecris, the third-largest supplier, a wholly owned subsidiary of defendant Cerberus-Plasma Holdings, LLC, and hoped to finalize the deal in August.
The FTC voted 2-0 to take legal action seeking to block the transaction, with two commissioners, Pamela Jones Harbour and William Kovacic, recused from participating.
Rachel David, a spokeswoman for CSL, said the company will “vigorously defend our case.”
