Title: Effective patent life in pharmaceuticals

Authors: Henry G. Grabowski, John M. Vernon

Addresses: Professor of Economics, Box 90097, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA. Professor of Economics, Box 90097, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA

Abstract: Effective patent life is lost in pharmaceuticals because of the lengthy time periods required for clinical trials and regulatory approval. A 1984 US law restores some of this lost patent time, while also facilitating generic competition when patents expire. This paper examines this law and the effects of other policy developments on market exclusivity times in pharmaceuticals. It also performs simulation analyses on how proposed legislative reforms would impact on future new drug introductions.

Keywords: effective patent life; pharmaceuticals; innovation; generic competition.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTM.2000.002803

International Journal of Technology Management, 2000 Vol.19 No.1/2, pp.98-120

Published online: 07 Jul 2003 *

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