# Few 2026 reexams target listed drug patents: 4 of 751.

Of 751 ex parte reexamination requests filed from January 1 to October 14, 2026, four target patents listed in the FDA’s Orange Book, about 0.5%. None target patents on the Purple Book list for biologics. The match covers listed patents only.

Sources checked October 16, 2026

**4 of 751** 2026 reexam requests target Orange Book–listed patents. None target Purple Book–listed patents.

## Before you read

Of 751 ex parte reexam requests filed in 2026 through October 14, how many target patents listed in the FDA’s Orange Book?

- 4
- About 40
- About 150

Four, about 0.5%. Two more supplemental examinations on listed patents are a separate proceeding and counted apart.

## Four of 751

The FDA’s Orange Book lists approved drugs and the patents that cover them. The Purple Book patent list does the same for biologics. We matched every 2026 ex parte reexamination request in the USPTO’s Open Data Portal against both lists. USPTO Open Data Portal FDA lists

Two more filings on listed patents are supplemental examinations, a separate proceeding in which the owner asks the Office to consider information. They are counted apart from the 751.

## Read the limits first

## What it means

## The takeaway

Reexamination’s growth has barely touched listed drug patents so far. Unlisted drug-related patents are a different question.

## Related stories

- [Ex parte reexam requests about doubled in FY2026.](https://postgrantproceeding.com/insights/t01-ex-parte-reexam-requests-about-doubled-in-fy2026)
- [Bio/pharma petitions were instituted more often in FY2026.](https://postgrantproceeding.com/insights/t06-bio-pharma-petitions-were-instituted-more-often-in-fy2026)
- [Same art, second try: 18 of 63 denials cite § 325(d).](https://postgrantproceeding.com/insights/t09-same-art-second-try)

## Sources

- S53. USPTO Open Data Portal: patent file-wrapper records for ex parte reexamination (90/ control numbers) and PTAB trial status, as pulled by PostGrantProceeding on Oct. 14 and 15, 2026. https://data.uspto.gov
- S87. FDA, Approved Drug Products with Therapeutic Equivalence Evaluations (Orange Book) and Purple Book patent list, matched by PostGrantProceeding against 2026 reexamination requests (Oct. 14, 2026). https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-approvals-and-databases/approved-drug-products-therapeutic-equivalence-evaluations-orange-book

Precedential decisions bind the Board within their designated scope. Informative decisions show the Office’s reasoning but do not bind the Board. Court opinions are cited for what they decided; later history was checked on the date shown above.

General information about published decisions, not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.