by Robin C. Feldman & Connie Wang

This is a full study of all drugs on the market that examines an avenue of pharmaceutical bad behavior. The study, which involved extracting and interpreting 160,000 individual data points covering all drugs on the market between 2005 and 2015, tracks each time that a pharmaceutical company extended its protection cliff. The study shows how drug companies repeatedly pile new protections onto each drug – ultimately blocking competition, keeping drug prices high, and preventing patients’ access to their medications.
The results demonstrate definitively that misuse of the patent and regulatory systems is not limited to a few pharma bad apples; it is business as usual throughout the industry.[…]