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BIO’s calling out the inconsistency between Biden’s new biotech EO and U.S. support for an expanded COVID IP waiver—plus, the Dept. of Energy released a roadmap to achieve major SAF and emissions goals. (672 words, 3 minutes, 21 seconds) |
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Expansion of COVID IP waiver ‘clearly inconsistent’ with biotech EO |
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On the heels of a misguided decision to waive IP protections for COVID vaccines, the WTO is considering expanding the waiver to therapeutics—but U.S. support for such a waiver would be inconsistent with Biden’s new executive order to advance U.S. biotech and biomanufacturing.
ICYMI: On September 12, President Biden signed an executive order to accelerate biotech innovation and grow the bioeconomy in the U.S., backed by $2 billion in funding.
An expanded IP waiver “would send U.S.-developed innovative technologies and biomanufacturing jobs overseas and, consequently, weaken the ability for U.S. biotech firms—including the hundreds of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) involved in the development of COVID-19 therapeutics—to compete globally and grow jobs domestically,” said BIO in a letter to President Biden this morning.
Small biotechs harmed the most: SMEs account for 307 of 357 COVID-19 therapeutics in development (86%), and most of these therapeutics potentially have other indications, which “may be their only path to financial viability and sustained investment to fund future R&D initiatives.”
What could the global public health community do instead? BIO says strengthening health systems infrastructure, addressing vaccine hesitancy, and supporting “more robust” procurement initiatives could have “meaningful impact” without harming U.S. innovation.
The bottom line: “The proposed expansion of the TRIPS waiver is nothing more than an effort by adversaries of the United States to use the COVID-19 pandemic as a pretext to fundamentally undermine the global IP rights system, undermine the United States’ position as a global leader in biotechnology, and gain access to some of the most innovative biotechnology tools without any good-faith negotiation with IP rights holders,” said BIO President and CEO Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath—read the letter here. More Health Care News: Bloomberg Law: Antibiotics misused during COVID get new look as infections rise
“The CDC is devoting funding to dozens of local health departments for programs to stop improper antibiotic prescribing following the rise in deadly bacterial and fungal infections during the COVID-19 pandemic.” |
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Enough SAF for 100% of aviation demand? That’s the government’s plan. |
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The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) on Friday released a government-wide plan to scale up “new technologies to produce sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs) across the U.S. airline industry”—something biotech’s been working on for a while.
Remember the SAF Grand Challenge?Announced by several government agencies last year, the SAF Grand Challenge aims to produce 3 billion gallons of SAF per year by 2030.
The roadmap,released Friday, outlines how the government will work to reduce 50% lifecycle GHG emissions by 2030 and produce enough SAF to cover 100% of projected aviation demand (about 35 billion gallons) by 2050.
Why SAF? U.S. commercial aviation consumes around 10% of all transportation energy and contributes 2% of U.S. carbon emissions—but SAF, made from renewable biomass and waste feedstocks, can reduce emissions by up to 80% compared to conventional jet fuel.
The roadmap covers six action areas: feedstock innovation, conversion technology innovation, building supply chains, policy and valuation analysis, enabling end use, and communicating progress and building support.
What they’re saying: “Not only is Sustainable Aviation Fuel critical to decarbonizing the airline industry and reaching our climate goals, but this plan will help American companies corner the market on a valuable emerging industry,” said Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm.
BIO’s long called for more support for SAF—and especially SAF tax credits—and BIO members Gevo, LanzaTech, Velocys, and Virent are among the companies partnering with airlines and the administration to scale up production. More reading: The Inflation Reduction Act contains historic support for SAF, including a tax credit for SAFs sold or used in 2023-2024—read more. |
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President Biden’s Monday: Welcoming 2021 World Series champions the Atlanta Braves to the White House, then holding a meeting of the White House Competition Council highlighting the progress made on the competition agenda and previewing new actions that will save families money and lower costs.
What’s Happening on Capitol Hill: ICYMI, last week, House Republicans unveiled their policy agenda for next year, which calls the recently passed drug price controls a “drug takeover scheme [that] could lead to 135 fewer lifesaving treatments and cures” (H/T Axios). |
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