Federal regulators are challenging patents on 20 brand name drugs, including the blockbuster weight-loss injection Ozempic, in the latest action by the Biden administration targeting industry practices that drive up pharmaceutical prices.
The Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday sent warning letters to 10 drugmakers, taking issue with patents on popular drugs for weight loss, diabetes, asthma and other reparatory conditions. The letters allege that certain patents filed by Novo Nordisk, GlaxoSmithKline, AstraZeneca and seven other companies are inaccurate or misleading.
Brand-name drugmakers use patents to protect their medicines and stave off cheaper, generic medicines. Most blockbuster drugs are protected by dozens of patents covering various ingredients, manufacturing processes and intellectual property. Generic drugmakers can only launch their own cheaper versions if the patents have expired or are successfully challenged in court.
“By filing bogus patent listings, pharma companies block competition and inflate the cost of prescription drugs, forcing Americans to pay sky-high prices for medicines they rely on,” said FTC Chair Lina Khan, in a statement.
I haven’t looked into it since I got my black market inhalers lookup but if I’m remembering correctly, another company IS making a generic version the old version…it’s just not fuckin covered by insurance.
I looked at all the cheap online pharmacies (goodrx, those Indian sites) and it still wasn’t affordable
Ah yes, privatized healthcare…
I really feel sorry for those Americans that actually voted to change that and never got it.
After two decades of complaining my conservative parents are starting to feel it. They’ve gone their whole lives without any health concerns until recently. All I can say is…you see our healthcare system suck ass now, right?
Problem is that from what I hear, conservatives tend to blame the liberals for it, because free market fixes everything if only those pesky regulations wouldn’t stand in the way.
They literally believe the water would be cleaner without regulation to prevent pollution and keep it clean. It’s next level indoctrination for decades.
Free market brought us Uber and Lyft! Amazing! But then it also brought us present day Uber and Lyft. Absolute shit.