National Policies on Secondary Pharmaceutical Patents

Over the past two decades the number of secondary pharmaceutical patents has grown in developed countries, together with concern about the diffusion of this practice to developing countries. Some developing countries have enacted policies restricting their grant on the view that such patents are not sufficiently innovative and can raise prices and create barriers to access medicines. The conference brought together academics and practitioners to examine (1) the restrictions that exist in developed and developing countries on obtaining and enforcing secondary patents and their effectiveness; (2) whether and how secondary pharmaceutical patents affect prices and access to medicines, and their impact, if any, on innovation incentives. This conference was organized by Bhaven Sampat, together with the Engelberg Center, and Ken Shadlen, The London School of Economics and Political Science.