Israel

[James Love <love@cptech.org>]

I had some requests for the USTR language on Israel.
I have included below language from the 1998 and 1999
National Trade Estimates (NTE) reports, and below that
from the 1998 and 1999 Special 301 list.  Jamie


Israel
USTR's 1999 NTE Report

Current Israeli patent law contains overly broad licensing
provisions concerning compulsory issuance for dependent and
non-working patents. A draft revision of Israel's patent law, now
under review, is expected to upgrade patent protection and
eliminate compulsory licensing.

. . .

Despite U.S. objections, the Government of Israel enacted in 1998
an amendment to the patent law which allows non-patent holders to
manufacture patented pharmaceutical products prior to the
expiration of patent rights in order to submit data to foreign
and Israeli health authorities to gain marketing approval. In
addition, in 1998, the Israeli Government introduced legislation
to permit the unauthorized parallel importation of
pharmaceutical, patented or otherwise, into Israel and to
sanction unfair use of test data. In February 1999, despite
strenuous U.S. objections, the Knesset approved the legislation.




USTR's 1998 NTE Report

LACK OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY PROTECTION

Current Israeli patent law contains overly broad licensing
provisions concerning compulsory issuance for dependent and
non-working patents. A draft revision of Israel's patent law, now
under review, would upgrade patent protection and eliminate
compulsory licensing. In addition, revised laws are under
consideration for the protection of industrial designs,
trademarks, and integrated circuits.

In February 1998, the Israeli Knesset passed a separate amendment
to the patent law which will allow non-patent holders to
manufacture limited quantities of patented pharmaceutical
products prior to the expiration of patent rights in order to
submit data to foreign and Israeli health authorities to gain
marketing approval. The amendment will also extend patent terms
for pharmaceutical products. The U.S. unsuccessfully objected to
the amendment and urged that Israel model its law on the
comparable provisions of U.S. law.
                                                        



Israel Priority Watch list language from USTR from 1999 and 1998


1999
February 1999 amendments to the Pharmacists Law diminish
pharmaceutical patent protection by permitting the parallel
importation of pharmaceuticals and sanction the unfair commercial
use of test data. The United States Government and U.S.
research-based pharmaceutical industry actively oppose this
change. 


1998
In February 1998, the Israeli Knesset amended the patent law to
allow non-patent holders to manufacture and export patented
pharmaceutical products prior to the expiration of the patent to
seek foreign and Israeli marketing approval when the patent
expires. The law also contains a provision allowing a relatively
short term of patent extension. Now pending are draft regulations
that would allow parallel importation of pharmaceuticals. 




-- 
James Love, Director, Consumer Project on Technology
I can be reached at love@cptech.org, by telephone 202.387.8030,
by fax at 202.234.5176. CPT web page is http://www.cptech.org