

UK clinical trials can't compare drugs against patented alternatives - uvdiv
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/pharmaceuticalsandchemicals/9892893/Government-to-scrap-patent-laws-on-drug-trials.html

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uvdiv
A comment explaining US law on this:

[http://pipeline.corante.com/archives/2013/02/26/standard_of_...](http://pipeline.corante.com/archives/2013/02/26/standard_of_care_not_so_fast_not_in_the_united_kingdom.php#1177059)

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tgflynn
Why would the fact that a drug is patented prevent it from being used in
clinical trials ? Can't a patented product generally be used as the buyer
wishes once it is purchased (subject to other laws of course) ?

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hga
The Wikipedia article on the First Sale Doctrine, which applies to copyrights
and trademarks led me to the Exhaustion doctrine for patents, which isn't so
clear cut it would appear: <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exhaustion_doctrine>

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uvdiv
_Before bringing a new drug to market, companies have to conduct clinical and
field trials which usually requires testing it against others already in the
market. Under the current system, carrying out assessments using patented
drugs is an infringement which can incur big costs._

 _...He added: “The main thing is to boost competition. Under the patent laws,
clinical trials have been shifting off-shore - so this is part of our agenda
of attracting more clinical trials here.”_

