This patent was originally scheduled to expire on March 27, 2007. The interim extension was granted pursuant to a portion of the Hatch-Waxman Act that provides a process for applying for interim extensions of up to one-year at a time, if a patent is scheduled to expire during the review of the application. This second interim grant extends the patent term until March 27, 2009, or until a final determination on the five year application is made, if earlier.
Based on the current stage of the review process, the company does not anticipate a final determination on the five year application prior to March 2009. Accordingly, the company anticipates that it will request a third interim extension later this year.
Al Altomari, COO of Barrier Therapeutics, said: “Vusion is a key brand for Barrier Therapeutics, and we are pleased to receive this second one-year patent term extension from the USPTO as we continue our efforts to secure the full five-year patent term restoration under the Hatch-Waxman Act which, if granted, could protect Vusion to 2012.”