KEI comments in FDA-2017-N-3615

On November 17, 2017, KEI provided comments in KEI-FDA-2017-N-3615 These were the topics discussed: Transparency Clinical trial costs Data from the Orphan Drug program Costs of trials for government funded research Asset acquisition costs. Licensing Access to Knowhow, data and materials… Continue Reading

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Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center often fails to disclose federal funding of inventions on initial patent

Summary:

  • A review of the “certificate of correction” to patents assigned to the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center finds frequent failures to disclose federal funding on initial patent applications.
  • When Fred Hutchinson reported no federal funding on patent applications, it was wrong 45 percent of the time, according to corrections later filed with the USPTO.

On October 19, 2017, I ran a query of the USPTO database of granted patents to identify patents granted to the Seattle based Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center.

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KEI’s opening statement at WIPO’s 2017 General Assembly focuses on role of Chief Economist

This was delivered the afternoon on October 3, 2017.

Opening statement of Knowledge Ecology International – WIPO General Assembly 2017

Thank you, Mr. Vice President.

KEI notes the controversies around the world regarding the costs and benefits of intellectual property policies, including in particular extended terms of copyright protection in some countries, access to copyrighted works out of commerce and in teaching and research, and the role of patents in both promoting and discouraging innovation, and creating barriers to access medicine.

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2017: Kymriah, the Novartis $475,000 CAR T treatment, received 50 percent Orphan Drug tax credit on trials

Missing in the reporting on the Novartis price for Kymriah, its new $475,000 CAR T treatment, is that Novartis received an Orphan Drug designation in February 3, 2015, and sequently received a tax credit subsidy from the United States equal to 50 percent of the cost of qualifying clinical trials.

From the FDA database on Orphan Designations:
https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/opdlisting/oopd/detailedIndex.cfm?cfgridkey=463114

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KEI statement regarding Gilead’s Acquisition of Kite Pharma

KEI statement regarding Gilead’s Acquisition of Kite Pharma.

“Congress should require the NIH to enforce the Bayh-Dole obligation to make the Kite Pharma Chimeric Antigen Receptors Technologies (CAR T) treatments available to the public on reasonable terms.

KEI notes that Kite reported spending $317 million in R&D from 2012 to June 30, 2017, and is selling the company for $11.9 billion.

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USTR Chief Innovation and Intellectual Property Negotiator

In February 2016, the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 became law, as PL 114-125. Section 609 of the law created a new position in USTR, the “Chief Innovation and Intellectual Property Negotiator.” This position creates a position for a presidential poltical appointee confirmed by the Senate, with the rank of ambassador, replacing the current system where the IP negotiators are civil servants, reporting to political appointees. Continue Reading

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