KEI Joins Amicus Brief in CIR v. Dept of Labor case on FOIA and Transparency of Government Records

On July 17, 2024, Knowledge Ecology International (KEI) joined Universities Allied for Essential Medicines, Dr. Christopher Morten, and Dr. Reshma Ramachandran in submitting an amicus brief in the case of the Center for Investigative Reporting, et al. v. United States… Continue Reading

KEI Comments on the Implications of Access and Benefit Sharing Commitments/Regimes and Other Proposed Commitments in the WHO Pandemic Agreement

On January 29, 2024, KEI submitted comments in response the Federal Register notice posted by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) concerning, “the Implications of Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) Commitments/Regimes and Other Proposed Commitments Being Considered Under… Continue Reading

NGO Letter to Biden Administration in Support of Xtandi Appeal

Today, eight non-governmental organizations sent the Biden Administration a letter of support for the administrative appeal of the request for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to use its rights in the patents on the prostate cancer drug… Continue Reading

Reference Pricing in US Government COVID-19-related Contracts

Knowledge Ecology International conducted a review of contracts entered into by the US government concerning COVID-19-related treatments, diagnostics, vaccines, and other countermeasure-related technologies, regarding reference pricing clauses in the agreements. Of the 104 contracts reviewed, it is difficult to say… Continue Reading

Cancer patients file administrative appeal on NIH rejection of Xtandi march-in petition with Secretary of HHS Becerra

On March 23, 2023, three prostate cancer patients, Robert Sachs, Clare Love and Eric Sawyer, filed an administrative appeal of the NIH decision to reject petition that HHS use Federal rights in patents on Xtandi to address pricing discrimination against… Continue Reading

25 Members of Congress Ask HHS Secretary to Act on Xtandi Request

On January 10, 2023, twenty-five Members of Congress sent a letter to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra urging him to act on the Xtandi request, and to use the Bayh-Dole Act to lower the price of Xtandi (enzalutamide) for US patients.… Continue Reading

NIH responds to Sachs/Love letter on the Xtandi Bayh-Dole safeguards petition, to say, still reviewing

NIH has sent a letter, dated Dec 1, to Robert Sachs and Clare Love, regarding the longstanding petition to HHS to use the federal government’s rights in the patented inventions for enzalutamide, marketed by Astellas in the USA at prices 3 to… Continue Reading

Letter from 19 groups asking HHS to take action on the ​request that HHS use the federal government rights in patents on the prostate drug enzalutamide, marketed by Astellas under the brand name Xtandi.

Attached is a letter from 19 groups asking HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra to take action on the ​request that HHS use the federal government rights in patents on the prostate drug enzalutamide, marketed by Astellas under the brand name Xtandi.… Continue Reading

Letter to Secretary of HHS Xavier Becerra regarding Xtandi march-in case from Robert Sachs and Clare Love

SecBecerra-18Nov2022-Sachs-Love-Xtandi November 18, 2022 Xavier Becerra Secretary Department of Health & Human Services Washington, DC Via Email: xavier.becerra@hhs.gov Dear Secretary Becerra: Today marks the one-year anniversary since the undersigned prostate cancer patients petitioned the Department of Health & Human Services… Continue Reading

Senators Tillis and Blackburn’s February 24, 2022 Letter to HHS Opposing the Use of Bayh-Dole March-in Rights

(More on this topic here: https://www.keionline.org/xtandi2021) On February 24, 2022, Senators Thom Tillis and Marsha Blackburn sent a letter to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra (PDF copy). The letter refers to “petitions to march-in on a pharmaceutical product purely based on… Continue Reading