The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has signed off on Amgen’s proposed $27.8 billion purchase of Horizon Therapeutics . The acquisition, one of the largest pharma deals in recent years, is set to close in the early fourth quarter of 2022.
The agreement resolves an FTC lawsuit filed in May attempting to block the deal over antitrust concerns. FTC did not entirely let Amgen off the hook, however, as it is prohibiting Amgen from bundling two of Horizon’s top drugs — the thyroid eye disease therapy Tepezza (teprotumumab-trbw) and gout medicine Krystexxa (pegloticase). The agency also will require Amgen to get FTC approval before it acquires any products treating the same diseases as Tepezza and Krystexxa until 2032. The agency also set other requirements that will be in place for 15 years. State attorneys general agreed to dismiss their suits as part of the deal.
Amgen-Horizon merger announced in late 2022Amgen said the deal with FTC would have no impac…