Pharmaceutical Patents (PDF) - Innovation.org

Excerpt: Patent protection in the United States gives inventors the exclusive right to sell an invention for up to 20 years before others may copy and sell it. However, the effective patent life, which only begins to run when the patent is granted and the invention can be marketed, is closer to 18 ½ years. For pharmaceuticals, the effective patent life is actually closer to 11 or 12 years since federal law requires a company to test its product for safety and efficacy and secure regulatory approval before marketing it, a process that can take years.

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