U.S. Senators Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) introduced the ETHIC Act, which would prevent Big Pharma from gaming our patent system through the use of anticompetitive “patent thickets.”
“Big Pharma knows exactly what it’s doing in monopolizing the U.S. patent system: driving up drug costs for Americans while preventing generic-drug manufacturers from getting their foot in the market. This bipartisan bill would break up the anticompetitive “patent thickets” that pharmaceutical companies have abused to the detriment of the American patient,” Senator Hawley said.
“For decades, Big Pharma has exploited U.S. courts and the patent system through anti-competitive practices that prevent generic and biosimilar competitors from entering the market, forcing Vermonters to pay more out of pocket for life-saving drugs. It’s outrageous, and it’s gone on for far too long,” said Senator Welch. “I’m proud to join my colleagues in introducing the ETHIC Act to stop pharmaceutical companies from abusing the patent system and lower prescription drug prices for patients across the country. Congress must pass our legislation to cut drug costs for families and streamline access to care.”
“Patent thickets” are dense webs of overlapping patents that companies must navigate to commercialize new technology, particularly common in pharmaceuticals where a single drug may be protected by dozens of patents covering an active compound, formulations, manufacturing processes, and delivery methods.
While these thickets can emerge naturally from the complexity of drug development, pharmaceutical companies also strategically build patent walls around drugs to extend market exclusivity beyond the original patent expiration, slowing access to affordable generic alternatives.
If signed into law this year, the Eliminating Thickets to Improve Competition (ETHIC) Act would:
- Limit Big Pharma’s ability to exploit the patent system to prevent generic competitors from entering the market.
- Save $16 billion over 10 years.
- Apply only to patents asserted against generic and biosimilar drug manufacturers and does not impact other industries.
- Allows a drug company to assert one patent per ‘terminally disclaimed group’ against a generic or biosimilar competitor, meaning if one patent in a family of duplicates is struck down by the courts, then all of its duplicates will also be invalidated.