Generic entry timeline

Emend generics — when can they launch?

Emend (APREPITANT) · Merck & Co. · 31 active US patents · 0 expired

Earliest patent expiry
2027-09-26
1 year remaining
Full patent estate to
2035-09-18
complete protection through 2035
FDA approval
2003
Merck & Co.

Where Emend sits in the generic timeline

Imminent generic cliff: earliest active US patent for Emend expires in 2027 (~1 year from today). ANDA filers are likely already preparing Paragraph IV certifications. Expect first-filer 180-day exclusivity competition imminently.

Under US Hatch-Waxman, a generic enters via an ANDA (Abbreviated New Drug Application) and may file with one of four Paragraph IV certifications attacking the brand's listed patents. If the brand sues within 45 days, a 30-month FDA approval stay is triggered. First Para IV filer typically gets 180-day market exclusivity.

Patent estate by type — active patents

Method-of-use patents only carve out specific indications; generics can launch with a "skinny label" omitting those uses. Composition-of-matter patents block the molecule itself.

  • Method of Use — 16 patents
  • Formulation — 15 patents

FDA U-codes carved out by Emend patents

Method-of-use patents are listed against specific FDA Patent Use Codes ("U-codes") representing carved-out indications. Generics can launch with a label that omits these uses.

U-codeDescription
U-901(no description)
U-1743(no description)
U-1916(no description)
U-2161(no description)
U-3787(no description)
U-3440(no description)
U-3690(no description)

Sample patent estate

Showing 6 of 31 active US patents. View full estate on the Emend drug page →

  • US8258132 Method of Use · expires 2027-09-26
    This patent protects a pharmaceutical composition of a tachykinin receptor antagonist for treating or preventing disorders such as depression, anxiety, inflammatory diseases, and emesis.
    USPTO title: Pharmaceutical composition of a tachykinin receptor antagonist
  • US8258132 Method of Use · expires 2027-09-26
    This patent protects a pharmaceutical composition of a tachykinin receptor antagonist for treating or preventing disorders such as depression, anxiety, inflammatory diseases, and emesis.
    USPTO title: Pharmaceutical composition of a tachykinin receptor antagonist
  • US8258132 Method of Use · expires 2027-09-26
    This patent protects a pharmaceutical composition of a tachykinin receptor antagonist for treating or preventing disorders such as depression, anxiety, inflammatory diseases, and emesis.
    USPTO title: Pharmaceutical composition of a tachykinin receptor antagonist
  • US8258132 Method of Use · expires 2027-09-26
    This patent protects a pharmaceutical composition of a tachykinin receptor antagonist for treating or preventing disorders such as depression, anxiety, inflammatory diseases, and emesis.
    USPTO title: Pharmaceutical composition of a tachykinin receptor antagonist
  • US9561229 Method of Use · expires 2035-09-18
    This patent protects novel pharmaceutical formulations of aprepitant, including those with dexamethasone sodium phosphate, for parenteral administration to treat emesis caused by cancer chemotherapy.
    USPTO title: Emulsion formulations of aprepitant
  • US9974742 Formulation · expires 2035-09-18
    This patent protects novel oil-in-water emulsion formulations of an NK-1 receptor antagonist for parenteral administration, including intravenous use.
    USPTO title: Emulsion formulations of an NK-1 receptor antagonist and uses thereof

Sources

Patent term extensions (PTR, pediatric exclusivity), Hatch-Waxman 30-month stays, and FDA regulatory exclusivity (NCE/ODE/PED) may shift the effective generic entry date. Not legal advice.

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