Print“Our patent protection candle is being burned at both ends.”
Sanofi-Aventis Canada said it is shedding nearly 70 jobs in its Canadian operations as part of a reorganization aimed at addressing challenges from the loss of patent exclusivity. But the company took the occasion to take issue with Canada’s intellectual property protections as it blamed government policies for declining access to innovative medicines.
Contrary to the generic drug industry, Canadian innovative pharmaceutical companies have no effective right of appeal when facing intellectual property challenges. Decisions made by Canada’s health authority cannot be appealed. Sanofi claims this is leading to genericization of branded medicines even while they are still under patent protection and that this threatens the company's ability to maintain its R&D investments, capital expenditures and job creation opportunities.
“Last September, we announced we would step away from the traditional pharmaceutical business model and rethink our most basic assumptions to ensure sustainable long-term growth,” says Hugh O'Neill, president and CEO of Sanofi-Aventis Canada. “This transformation is an example of our evolving needs to ensure sustainable growth.
O’Neill says Sanofi wants the industry and government to focus on the healthcare needs of Canadians by applying the intellectual property protection regime it says will result in quality medicines and cures in the future.
“Our patent protection candle is being burned at both ends,” says O'Neill. “It takes us longer to get our innovative patented medicines on the market at the outset and the lack of intellectual property protection threatens to cut our patent protection short at the other end. We can't ignore this reality anymore, which runs counter to current trends in large industrialized markets.”
He says stronger partnerships with governments will lead to a sustainable industry that continues to grow and invest in Canada and that does not become disadvantaged with respect to international counterparts.
BIOTECanada, Canadian biotech’s advocacy organization, has been working to get the government to change the policy regarding the right of appeal, according to Philip Schwab, vice president of industry relations. The Canadian drug industry has worked hard to bring the country’s intellectual property regime regarding therapeutic innovation in line with European standards. It has only been two years since the industry got eight years of exclusivity for innovative drugs.
May 07, 2010
http://www.burrillreport.com/article-sanofi_complains_about_canadas_bias_for_generics_as_it_cuts_jobs.html
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