Teva Comments On The Court Of Appeals Decision Regarding Generic Version of Vicoprofen.

Business Editors/Health/Medical Writers

JERUSALEM--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 19, 2004

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (Nasdaq:TEVA) announced today that the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has vacated a September 2002 summary judgment decision by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois regarding a U.S. patent on a combination of Hydrocodone Bitartrate and Ibuprofen. The district court had ruled that the U.S. patent was invalid as obvious. The patent expires on December 18, 2004. The patent was asserted by Knoll Pharmaceutical Company, now a subsidiary of Abbott Laboratories, which markets the combination as Vicoprofen(R). The 2002 annual sales of the branded product in the U.S. were estimated to be approximately $108 million. In April 2003, following FDA approval, Teva USA launched its product, Hydrocodone Bitartrate and Ibuprofen Tablets, 7.5 mg/200 mg. Knoll had appealed the district court's judgment.

The Court of Appeals has remanded the case to the District Court for further proceedings, which will involve Teva's allegations of inequitable conduct, invalidity, and non-infringement.

The Company plans to continue selling its Hydrocodone Bitartrate and Ibuprofen product. Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., headquartered in Israel, is among the top 25 pharmaceutical companies and among the largest generic pharmaceutical companies in the world. The company develops, manufactures and markets generic and innovative human pharmaceuticals and active pharmaceutical ingredients. Close to 90% of Teva's sales are in North America and Europe.

Safe Harbor Statement under the U. S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This release contains forward-looking statements, which express the current beliefs and expectations of management. Such statements are based on current expectations and involve a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause Teva's future results, performance or achievements to differ significantly from the results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include Teva's ability to successfully develop and commercialize additional pharmaceutical products, the introduction of competitive generic products, the impact of competition from brand-name companies that sell their own generic products or successfully extend the exclusivity period of their branded products, Teva's ability to rapidly integrate the operations of acquired businesses, including its recent acquisition of Sicor Inc., the availability of product liability coverage in the current insurance market, the impact of pharmaceutical industry regulation and pending legislation that could affect the pharmaceutical industry, the difficulty of predicting U.S. Food and Drug Administration and other regulatory authority approvals, the regulatory environment and changes in the health policies and structure of various countries, acceptance and demand for new pharmaceutical products and new therapies, uncertainties regarding market acceptance of innovative products newly launched, currently being sold or in development, the impact of restructuring of clients, reliance on strategic alliances, exposure to product liability claims, dependence on patent and other protections for innovative products, fluctuations in currency, exchange and interest rates, operating results and other factors that are discussed in Teva's Annual Report on Form 20-F and its other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.