Consent decree lifted on King Pharma plant

King Pharmaceuticals says that the US District Court in New Jersey has lifted its 1993 consent decree that pertained to the firm's sterile manufacturing facility located in Rochester, Michigan. The Court vacated the consent decree based on the Rochester plant's continued compliance with Food and Drug Administration Good Manufacturing Practices.

Chief executive Brian Markison commented: "this is yet another important milestone for King. We are extremely pleased with our manufacturing, quality assurance/quality control and regulatory compliance teams, who have worked diligently to ensure that all of our manufacturing facilities meet or exceed the good manufacturing practices established by the FDA. We believe it was this continued diligence and commitment that led the Court to lift the consent decree that affected our Rochester facility."

King acquired the Rochester facility, which manufactures both drug and biological pharmaceutical products, in February 1998 from Warner-Lambert, which was bought by Pfizer.