Chattanooga-based Chattem, already with two key prescription to over-the-counter product switches under its belt, will soon roll out a third with allergy medicine Xyzal.
The 138-year-old consumer drug company plans to begin marketing Xyzal Allergy 24HR this spring after Chattem parent Sanofi said Wednesday the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the move.
Robert Long, Chattem’s chief executive, said FDA approval of Xyzal builds on the company’s heritage of successful prescription to over-the-counter launches.
Long said Xyzal “adds another trusted option to our existing portfolio of [over-the-counter] allergy medications.”
“We look forward to making it available to allergy sufferers across the country as the latest product in our growing consumer health care business,” he said in a statement.
Sanofi said Xyzal is an oral antihistamine with a proven 24-hour effect. Two formulations of Xyzal are now approved for over the counter use – 5 mg tablets for ages 6 years and older, as well as 0.5 mg/ml oral solution for ages 2 years and older, the company said.
Heather Levis Guzzi, a Sanofi U.S. spokeswoman, said the new products will be packaged by Chattem in Chattanooga. Production of Xyzal will be sourced to a third party, she said.
Marketing and other work related to the rollout of the medicine will be done in Chattanooga, Guzzi said. She said it’s too early to comment on whether Xyzal will lead to more Chattem jobs locally.
In 2011, Chattem took the blockbuster allergy medicine Allegra from a prescription to an over-the-counter product. About two years later, Chattem did the same for nasal allergy spray Nasacort.
The results have helped lift Chattem’s annual sales from about $100 million to more than $1 billion, according to the company.
In addition, Chattem officials hope to launch erectile dysfunction medicine Cialis as an over-the-counter drug if the action is approved by federal regulators.
Chattem, which also sells such popular products as Icy Hot, Gold Bond and ACT mouthwash, employs about 600 people in Chattanooga.
Chattem was founded as Chattanooga Medicine Co. in 1879. It began operations on Market Street in downtown Chattanooga and now has its corporate offices in St. Elmo.
Paris, France-based Sanofi is a pharmaceutical giant that bought Chattem in 2010 for $1.9 billion in cash. The company has used Chattem as its U.S.-based consumer health care operation.
Contact Mike Pare at mpare@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6318.