Take action to support Maryland's life sciences industry and protect local patients
Maryland is a national leader in life sciences innovation. Our state is home to over 3,400 life sciences companies that generate $20 billion annually for our local economy and employ over 54,000 Marylanders.
However, the Biden administration is planning to weaken intellectual property (IP) rights on certain biopharmaceutical innovations – a decision that will thwart future investments in new medical research, leading to fewer local life sciences jobs, less treatment options for patients, and disrupt our ability respond quickly to public health challenges, like the COVID-19 pandemic.
Strong IP rights are the backbone of our state's ability to research, develop, and deliver innovative treatments for patients in Maryland and beyond. Efforts to erode critical IP protections in the name of lowering health care costs is a misguided attempt that will only harm patients and local jobs in our state.
Help us protect Maryland patients and local jobs across the state.
Join us today and send an email to the Biden administration urging them not to move forward with any policies that will weaken IP rights and hurt patients in Maryland and beyond.
Dear Legislator,
Maryland is a national leader in biopharmaceutical innovation, leading the country in the development of new treatments to treat many chronic and debilitating conditions. Our ability to develop and bring new medications to market is due, in part, to the incentivization of public and private partnerships and the protection of strong intellectual property (IP) rights.
Our current IP system is the foundation for new treatments and cures. However, the Biden administration's recently released guidelines around the use of "march-in" rights will decimate our local innovation ecosystem in Maryland – as well as our national ability – to develop new medications, respond to public health threats, and excel in biomedical innovation. March-in rights are intended to only be used in four specific circumstances and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has historically denied every march-in request because the correct circumstances have never been met. Misusing march-in rights will have little to no impact on the cost of medicines, and will only hold back critical research and development for treatments that patients are waiting for.
Please protect our nation's ability to bring new treatments and cures from a research lab to a patient's medicine cabinet. Weakening IP rights is a misguided attempt to lower health care costs for patients. Take action to protect patients, public and private partnerships, and our nation's leading life sciences industry.
Thank you,
[Name]
