Draft:KVK-Tech

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KVK-Tech, Inc.
Company typePrivate
IndustryPharmaceutical manufacturing
Founded2004 (2004)
FounderMurty Vepuri
HeadquartersNewtown, Pennsylvania, United States
Key people
Anthony Tabasso (CEO)
ProductsGeneric drugs
Websitekvktech.com

KVK-Tech, Inc. is an American generic drug manufacturer headquartered in Newtown, Pennsylvania.[1]

History

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KVK-Tech was founded in 2004 by Murty Vepuri, who previously operated Able Laboratories in New Jersey. Between 2006 and 2012, KVK-Tech was among the largest manufacturers of generic opioid medications in the United States, producing 580 million pills.[1]

In March 2015, KVK-Tech purchased a 52-acre former Lockheed Martin corporate campus in Newtown Township for $12.5 million.[2][3]

In September 2016, the FDA approved the company's first branded product, KVK-Tech's Lomaira (phentermine) 8mg tablets for weight reduction.[4]

As of 2022, KVK-Tech operates multiple facilities in Pennsylvania, including its headquarters at 110 Terry Drive in Newtown Township, the former Lockheed Martin campus at 100 Campus Drive in Newtown Township, and a manufacturing facility in Falls Township.[1]

In 2023, KVK-Tech entered into strategic partnerships with Sen-Jam Pharmaceutical for the development, manufacturing, and distribution of pharmaceutical products.[5]

Community programs

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Since 2017, KVK-Tech has partnered with the Council Rock School District in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, to support STEM education programs.[6]

Regulatory issues and recalls

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FDA warning letters

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In February 2020, the FDA issued a warning letter to KVK-Tech's headquarters facility after an April 2019 inspection found violations of current good manufacturing practices (cGMP), including impurity levels and foreign objects in medication lots.[7][8]

In October 2020, the FDA issued a second warning letter to KVK-Tech's facility at the former Lockheed Martin campus after a February-March 2020 inspection identified additional cGMP violations, including inadequate cleaning validation procedures.[9]

Product recalls

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In July 2021, KVK-Tech issued a voluntary nationwide recall of one lot of betaxolol tablets after a single foreign tablet was discovered during line clearance after packaging.[10]

In August 2021, the company recalled two lots of atovaquone oral suspension used to treat Pneumocystis pneumonia in HIV/AIDS patients due to a temperature control issue during shipping.[11][12]

In October 2023, KVK-Tech recalled a batch of losartan potassium/hydrochlorothiazide tablets after an oxycodone tablet was found in a bottle of the blood pressure medication.[13]

Criminal charges

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In June 2021, the United States Department of Justice charged KVK-Tech, Murty Vepuri, and quality assurance director Ashvin Panchal with conspiracy to defraud the FDA.[14] The indictment alleged that from October 2010 through March 2015, the company distributed more than 383,000 bottles of hydroxyzine, an anxiety medication, using an unapproved active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) from a Dr. Reddy's Laboratories facility in Mexico that was under an FDA import alert due to manufacturing violations.[14]

In 2022, U.S. District Judge Harvey Bartle III dismissed part of the charges, ruling that the use of the Mexican manufacturing location did not constitute distributing a new drug, as the API had the same chemical composition as approved sources.[1]

In July 2021, federal agents conducted searches at KVK-Tech facilities in Newtown and Falls Township, seizing 30 terabytes of digital information and 500 boxes of company records.[15]

References

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