FDA approves new generic pain patch

The FDA has approved Lavipharm's generic version of Ortho-McNeil's Duragesic pain patch. The news immediately sent Mylan Laboratories' stock into a tailspin, coming just hours after Mylan announced that it expected no new generic competition to its own copycat version this year. Mylan, however, later reaffirmed its projections for 2007, though analysts appeared skeptical that it would emerge unscathed if Lavipharm moves quickly. The FDA's action marked the first approval for a drug company based in Greece.

- read the AP report on the FDA's decision