China’s Drug Patent Grab Makes Coronavirus Scary for Pharma
An attempt to patent a medicine developed by drugmaker Gilead raises intellectual property concerns and may cool the industry’s China ardor.
Patent seizures could be counter-productive in the fight against the coronavirus.
Photographer: Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images
The coronavirus outbreak in China is already threatening to undermine the global economy. It may soon create a similar shake-up in the drug industry.
I'm not talking about pharmaceutical companies’ attempts to develop a vaccine, but about intellectual property. Chinese researchers have applied for a patent on an antiviral drug candidate called remdesevir owned by Gilead Sciences Inc. The drug is being tested in clinical trials in short order, but the company could eventually be cut out.