New Report Backs Biopharma Innovation as Enabler for New Treatments, Jobs and Investments, says IPHA

Protecting Ireland’s innovation policy environment is key to developing new medicines for patients, and to attracting fresh investments in pharmaceutical manufacturing and research, according to a report published today [Friday] by EY-DKM, the economic advisory consultants.

The report, ‘The Pharmaceutical Industry in Ireland – Innovation and the IP Framework’, was commissioned by the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association (IPHA), the representative body for the international research-based pharmaceutical industry in Ireland.

The report shows that Ireland’s attractiveness as a global investment location is enabled by an enterprise policy mix that supports innovation. It argues that Ireland’s intellectual property (IP) rights, the scaffolding for innovation, are key in “incentivising innovation, rewarding investment and securing a supply of quality medicines”. IP rights, the report says, are among the enablers for attracting investments with strong research and development components. This, in turn, creates high-quality, well-paid jobs, and spurs the development of new therapies for diseases and conditions. Over the past 10 years, the pharmaceutical industry has invested close to €10 billion in manufacturing and research sites around the country.

As the report shows, more than 7,000 medicines are in development globally at any one time. Some 80 medicines are approved by the European Medicines Agency every year, including around 30 new approved substances. The process of discovering, manufacturing and adopting new treatments, though long and costly, is underpinned by a robust IP policy environment. To make one medicine can cost more than €2 billion, and take up to 13 years, according to the report.

However, the report warns about “risks to growth”, including a proposal by the European Commission (EC) to introduce a waiver on an EU-wide intellectual property right called a Special Protection Certificate (SPC). This would remove a five-year extension to the standard 20-year patent protection period that compensates innovative manufacturers for the time and costs involved in discovery, licensing and authorisation of medicines. Often, more than half of a 20-year patent life is gone before payment is received for a new medicine. The EC’s proposal is now under discussion among Member States, with the legislation planned for enactment ahead of the European Parliament elections in May.

The report argues that “reforms to the existing IP framework could mean fewer innovative medicines will be researched and developed, and could negatively impact the number and quality of jobs created by innovative firms”. It points out the healthcare gains prompted by medical innovation, including better survival rates for cancer, dramatic improvements in outcomes for cardiovascular disease, and highly effective treatments for Hepatitis C. Ireland’s foreign-owned international pharmaceutical companies directly employ 30,000 people, with about as many more working in spin-off jobs, according to the report.

Oliver O’Connor, Chief Executive of IPHA, said the report was an important overview of Ireland’s IP landscape. He urged the Government to work with industry to guard against any negative implications from the EC’s proposals to weaken protections for the innovative pharmaceutical industry. “The report captures the importance of a robust IP environment in incentivising innovation for the development of new treatments for patients. Without innovation, there would be no cures. As the EC’s legislation is shaped in the coming months, we have an opportunity to ensure certain safeguards are built in, including that the waiver only applies for export to countries where there is no intellectual property protection or where it has expired, and that there be no scope for the retrospective application of the new rules. It is vital that the incentive to innovate created by IP rights is not further undermined,” said Mr O’Connor.

The Irish Universities Association (IUA), the representative body for Ireland’s seven universities whose research activitiy often links into the innovative pharmaceutical industry’s work, added its voice to the call for more collaboration to strengthen Ireland’s innovation policy environment.

Jim Miley, Director General of the IUA, said the report makes a compelling case for building stronger links between the industry and research communities. “Many of our universities are working closely with the pharmaceutical industry on research projects that are yielding new therapies for increasingly complex medical conditions. These collaborations are powered by innovation, recognising that IP incentives are an essential part of the enabling framework for joint work on behalf of patients. It is important that all stakeholders across the private and public sectors work together to protect and enhance Ireland’s innovation environment,” said Mr Miley.

The report, ‘The Pharmaceutical Industry in Ireland – Innovation and the IP Framework’, is available here: Report-on-Pharma-and-IP-in-Ireland-EY-DKM-for-IPHA_2

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Notes for Editors 

About IPHA

IPHA is the representative organisation of the research-based pharmaceutical industry in Ireland. We represent 48 international companies that discover and develop new medicines for treating or curing  many medical conditions, improving both the quality of life and the life expectancy of patients.

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