Facing competition for Restasis, Allergan moves to cut costs by slashing 1,400 jobs

Allergan (NYSE:AGN) said this week that it plans to cut more than 5% of its workforce in an attempt to cut costs. The drug-maker is facing competition from up-coming generics to its dry-eye drug, Restasis.

The company said it anticipates taking a $125 million hit from the job cuts, the majority of which will be noted in the fourth quarter of the 2017 fiscal year.

The cost savings from its restructuring program should be between $300 – $400 million per year, according to Allergan.

Allergan has fought to shield its Restasis product from competition, even going so far as to transfer the drug’s patents to a Native American tribe in order to protect them from review by regulators in the U.S.

The move was highly controversial and struck a nerve around the industry. In October, a federal judge in Texas invalidated Allergan’s Restasis patents on the grounds of obviousness. Allergan is appealing the judge’s decision.

In his decision, William Bryson wrote that “sovereign immunity should not be treated as a monetizable commodity that can be purchased by private entities as part of a scheme to evade their legal responsibilities.”

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