The use of compulsory licenses by high-income countries to gain access to medicines increased considerably over a recent 10-year period, mostly for treatments of noncommunicable diseases such as cancer and cystic fibrosis, along with Covid-19, a new study found.
Specifically, the number of compulsory licenses pursued by wealthier nations rose from 15% of all such licenses between 2005 and 2014 to 54% between 2015 and 2024. In all, 149 such licenses were considered by any country — rich or poor — during that 20-year span, according to the study in BMJ Global Health.
The findings may be surprising, given that such licenses have been controversial. A compulsory license allows a country to grant a license to a public agency or generic drugmaker to copy a patented medicine without the consent of the brand-name company that owns the patent.Continue to STAT+ to read the full story…