A new trade pact being negotiated between the U.S., Mexico and Canada has been stripped of provisions that would have protected drugmakers from biosimilar competition for at least a decade.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Democrats pressured the Trump administration to remove the language that was designed to keep the biologic protection at a level similar to the 12 years of exclusivity drugmakers enjoy in the U.S. Now, without that provision, countries under the trade deal will be free to set their own rules for biologic drug exclusivity, which could have big ramifications for American companies in those foreign markets.
Several pharma industry trade groups decried the decision, complaining that foreign companies will attack American intellectual property, and one accused Washington of putting “politics over patients.”
During his campaign for president, Trump frequently criticized the pharma industry for high drug prices and promised to re-negotiate NAFTA. This latest trade deal with Mexico and Canada will likely be ratified by Congress in 2020.
