U.S. Senators Introduce Bipartisan Bills to Curb Drug Prices by Targeting Patent Thickets and Product Hopping

A bipartisan group of U.S. senators has introduced two legislative proposals aimed at leveraging the patent system to help reduce the cost of prescription medications. These bills focus primarily on addressing “patent thickets” and designate “product hopping” as a breach of antitrust regulations. Patent thickets refer to a dense web of overlapping intellectual property rights which can stifle competition and innovation, potentially leading to artificially inflated drug prices. Meanwhile, product hopping involves minor tweaks to medications designed to extend patent protection and delay generic competition, thereby preserving market share and high prices. For more detailed information, the original article can be accessed here.