Members of Congress Say Addressing “Patent Thickets Surrounding Branded
Pharmaceutical Products” is “Critical Pro-Competition Reform”





 



THEY SAID IT! BIPARTISAN GROUP OF LAWMAKERS URGE ADMINISTRATION TO SUPPORT
CRACKDOWN ON BIG PHARMA’S PATENT THICKETS

Members of Congress Say Addressing “Patent Thickets Surrounding Branded
Pharmaceutical Products” is “Critical Pro-Competition Reform”



In case you missed it, several members of the U.S. House and U.S. Senate
recentlycalled
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on the U.S. Department of Commerce to prioritize cracking down on Big Pharma’s
egregious abuse of the patent system, particularly around brand name drug
companies’ use of patent thickets to block competition from more affordable
alternatives to high-priced biologic drugs.



In a letter sent earlier this month, U.S. Representatives Jodey Arrington
(R-TX-19), Lloyd Doggett (D-TX-35), August Pfluger (R-TX-11) and U.S. Senator
Peter Welch (D-VT) urged U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick
to consider endorsing reforms including the bipartisan Eliminating Thickets to
Increase Competition (ETHIC) Act, which wasreintroduced
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in the U.S. Senate in July, to crack down on Big Pharma’s abuse of the patent
system. A U.S. House companion version of the bill wasintroduced
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“Duplicative patent thickets create significant barriers to market entry for
biosimilars and generics, delaying access to affordable medications and
sustaining high drug prices for patients,” the December 5letter
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states. “As a bipartisan group of members committed to lowering drug prices,
we write to urge the U.S. Department of Commerce to prioritize addressing the
issue of patent thickets surrounding branded pharmaceutical products,
particularly biologics, as a critical pro-competition reform.”



The letter outlines how the legislation would help “foster competition, reduce
healthcare costs, and support domestic manufacturing,” helping the Trump
Administration reach it’s “commitment to promoting a competitive economy and
reducing regulatory burdens.”



The Administration has shown interest in scrutinizing Big Pharma’s abuse of
the U.S. patent system and taken positive steps toward fostering greater
competition from more affordable alternatives to high-priced brand name drugs.
In November, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Dr.
Marty Makary and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator
Dr. Mehmet Ozannounced
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reforms to accelerate biosimilar approvals.



The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has also continued to challenge sham
patents in the FDA’s Orange Book. According to a recentanalysis
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, the FTC’s most recent round of challenges led to the prompt delisting of 41
unique patents — a de facto admission by brand name manufacturers that dozens
of the challenged patents were so baseless they weren’t even worth an attempted
defense.



The Administration can build on this positive progress and deliver lasting
relief for hardworking Americans facing difficulty affording their prescription
drugs, by supporting bipartisan, market-based solutions to crack down on Big
Pharma’s patent abuse in Congress, like the ETHIC Act.



Read the full lawmaker letter addressed to U.S. Department of Commerce
Secretary Howard LutnickHERE
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.



Read more on how Big Pharma’s patent abuse is a root cause of high
prescription drug pricesHERE
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Read more on bipartisan, market-based solutions to hold Big Pharma accountable
HERE <[link removed]>.



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