Biocom Expresses Strong Concerns Over New USMCA Agreement Removing Essential Protections for Life-Saving Drugs

SAN DIEGO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#BayArea–Biocom, the association representing the life science industry of California, issued the following statement in response to the revised United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) deal unveiled yesterday by the Trump Administration. The statement can be attributed to Joe Panetta, Biocom’s president and CEO.

“We are extremely disappointed in both the Trump Administration for abandoning a policy that they had previously embraced and House leadership for championing this ill-advised change. The biologics provision in the original agreement would have lengthened data exclusivities for biologics for Canada and Mexico to a minimum of 10 years, from 8 and 5 years, respectively, bringing them closer to the U.S. standard of 12 years. This provision, which had been accepted by all three countries, would have prevented some of the foreign ‘free-riding’ that President Trump had repeatedly spoken against.

“Strong intellectual property protections are essential to the research and development of new biologics, physician-administered medicines that treat some of the most debilitating diseases such as cancer, cystic fibrosis, multiple sclerosis and many others. California’s life science industry, which is one of the world’s leaders in biomedical innovation, would be among the first to suffer, especially small and emerging companies which comprise approximately 90 percent of Biocom’s industry membership and which rely on intellectual property protections to compete in global markets

“The United States develops two-thirds of the world’s medicines. Removing the exclusivities provision from the agreement will put innovation at risk. The Administration and Speaker Nancy Pelosi missed a critical opportunity to level the playing field with our trading partners and establish safeguards for American innovators, and they have set a dangerous precedent for future trade agreements.”

About Biocom

Biocom is the largest, most experienced leader and advocate for California’s life science sector. We work on behalf of more than 1,200 members to drive public policy, build an enviable network of industry leaders, create access to capital, introduce cutting-edge STEM education programs, and create robust value-driven purchasing programs.

Founded in 1995 in San Diego, Biocom provides the strongest public voice to research institutions and companies that fuel the local and state-wide economy. Our goal is simple: to help our members produce novel solutions that improve the human condition. In addition to our San Diego headquarters, Biocom operates core offices in Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area, satellite offices in Washington, D.C. and Tokyo, and has a continuous staff presence in Sacramento. Our broad membership benefits apply to biotechnology, pharmaceutical, medical device, genomics and diagnostics companies of all sizes, as well as to research universities and institutes, clinical research organizations, investors and service providers.

For more information on Biocom, please visit our website at www.biocom.org. Connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter (@BIOCOMCA).

Contacts

Biocom Media Contact:
Carolyn Hawley

Canale Communications

[email protected]
619-849-5382