In a bid to address the high cost of prescription drugs, a group of congressional Democrats is urging federal officials to tap a little-known 1910 law that would allow the government to sidestep patents on hepatitis C medicines.
The law resembles eminent domain: the Department of Health and Human Services could use a patented invention without permission, and a drug maker could demand a “reasonable” compensation — such as royalties — but cannot stop the government from taking such a step.
The notion has been floated over the past year as government agencies grapple with rising prices for some medicines. Last year, for instance, the Louisiana health secretary publicly considered asking HHS to sidestep hepatitis C drug patents in hopes that lower-cost generics could be manufactured.
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