An apparently not uncommon means of extending patent protection used by drug makers in the US (and presumably the rest of the world) is to delay release of newer, better drugs until near the end...
An apparently not uncommon means of extending patent protection used by drug makers in the US (and presumably the rest of the world) is to delay release of newer, better drugs until near the end of the patent protections of the original version. In this case, side effects of the original drug resulted in people getting osteoporosis and liver disease. Their suffering was wholly avoidable.
I think in theory there shouldn't be anything stopping one of their competitors from making one of these "improved" drug versions. Though the competitor would not be able to release it until the...
I think in theory there shouldn't be anything stopping one of their competitors from making one of these "improved" drug versions. Though the competitor would not be able to release it until the original drug patent had expired. While the original patent holder could release their own improved version at any point. I suppose in reality the competitor might benefit the most by just selling their new patent to any improved version to the original manufacturer. The original patent holder also probably has a lot more private data available to them to guide them in the right direction for how to make improvements giving them a large advantage. They know what failed in the original development, they know what side effects patients are having, and lots of data from the original trials as well.
An apparently not uncommon means of extending patent protection used by drug makers in the US (and presumably the rest of the world) is to delay release of newer, better drugs until near the end of the patent protections of the original version. In this case, side effects of the original drug resulted in people getting osteoporosis and liver disease. Their suffering was wholly avoidable.
Mirror, for those hit by the paywall:
https://archive.is/yY67L
I think in theory there shouldn't be anything stopping one of their competitors from making one of these "improved" drug versions. Though the competitor would not be able to release it until the original drug patent had expired. While the original patent holder could release their own improved version at any point. I suppose in reality the competitor might benefit the most by just selling their new patent to any improved version to the original manufacturer. The original patent holder also probably has a lot more private data available to them to guide them in the right direction for how to make improvements giving them a large advantage. They know what failed in the original development, they know what side effects patients are having, and lots of data from the original trials as well.