[Pharm-policy] Paying for health care R&D: Carrots and Sticks

[James Love]

Comments welcome on this paper. Jamie


http://www.cptech.org/ip/health/rnd/carrotsnsticks.html

Paying for health care R&D: Carrots and Sticks

      James Love
 First draft: October 18, 2000
   Revised October 19, 2000 
      version 1.0f 

   I.Introduction 

     Nearly every effort to lower prices of medicines or other medical
technologies eventually leads to debates over the need to provide
economic incentives to fund health care R&D. Efforts to provide lower
prices, shorter patent terms, compulsory licensing, reform the orphan
drug act, or countless other initiatives are confronted with the
inevitable question: will this reduce R&D efforts for new therapies, and
if so, do we want the lower levels of health care R&D?

This, however is only the most superficial level of the debate. Market
incentives for health care R&D are not efficient. This paper explores
the mechanisms available to governments (and donors) to enhance R&D
efforts.

  [snip]

-- 
James Love  mailto:love@cptech.org http://www.cptech.org
Consumer Project on Technology, P.O. Box 19367, Washington, DC 20036
voice 1.202.387.8030  fax  1.202.234.5176