Advocacy News – Sept. 11, 2024
What happened: More than four decades ago (1980 via the Bayh-Dole Act), the federal government began allowing public sector institutions like universities that received federal funding to work alongside private sector entrepreneurs in emerging fields and patent inventions they produced. However, proposals from Washington would upend that and allow the federal government to “march-in” and seize patents businesses create with these institutions, specifically if they deem the cost of the product “too high.”
Why it matters: The Biden administration, in a backdoor way, is attempting to control the price of items like prescription drugs with this excessive overreach. The proposal is expansive, and not limited to one specific industry and instead affects every business sector. It also threatens American innovation and student success. This ‘confiscation over collaboration’ would:
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Lead to higher prices.
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Diminish consumer choice and the innovation that creates the products and technologies we rely on.
Go deeper: Read the U.S. Chamber’s detailed analysis of the proposal, and how it could impact American ingenuity.
What’s next: Stay tuned for our next article and upcoming podcast discussing this issue, how you can get involved, and how the MI Chamber is partnering with a new national coalition to defeat this proposal.
For questions or more information, please contact Leah Robinson.