Market Watch has reported that Endo International, a generics and specialty branded pharmaceutical company with U.S. headquarters in Malvern, PA, will close its Huntsville, AL manufacturing plant, as a result of declining volumes of commoditized products. In-Pharma Technologist.com says that the Huntsville plant produces generic products for pain relievers Oxycodone and Hydrocodone, as well as the anti-inflammatory drug Prednisone.
The closure, expected over the next 16 to 18 months, will result in 875 job losses. Endo said in a press release that it expects to realize approximately $55 million to $65 million in annual net savings from the closure.
The company says it is attempting “to better match manufacturing capacity to projected future demand,” though the announcement comes on the heels of another from Endo, in early July, where it said it would voluntarily remove one of its products from the market. The extended release Opana ER painkiller became the subject of an investigation by the FDA which ultimately resulted in the organization’s request that Endo remove the drug because of a growing opioid abuse crisis. The FDA said that the benefits of Opana ER no longer outweighed the risks, and its continued abuse had led to outbreaks in HIV and hepatitis infections.
Despite the recent issue with Opana ER, at least some of the plans relating to Huntsville seem to have been in the works for a while. The company had announced last year that it would embark on restructuring that would impact the plant, though it did not, at the time, announce its intent to close it.