Patent Reform

Economists have long recognized that the development and spread of economic innovations are the most powerful factors affecting how fast the U.S. economy grows and how much the incomes of most Americans will rise.

On July 23rd, the House passed by voice vote an amendment on human patenting offered by Dave Weldon (R-Fla.) as part of the Commerce-Justice-State appropriations bill (H.R. 2799).

On October 24th the FDA published proposed regulations that affect implementation of the Hatch-Waxman law. These changes in part respond to recommendations in a July 2002 Federal Trade Commission (FTC) report and a Citizen Petition filed with the FDA by the FTC in May 2001.