On June 17th, a Rubicon of sorts was crossed in Geneva as The World Trade Organization (WTO) agreed to the compulsory licensing for COVID-19 vaccines. In plain English, world leaders, including representatives from the US Trade Representative, agreed to allow countries to access core mRNA intellectual property without requiring permission from the patent holders.

The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board said the agreement is “a vehicle to raid U.S. innovation…that will benefit China and set a precedent that erodes intellectual property protection.”

In this podcast, Duane Schulthess speaks with Hans Sauer, the Deputy General Counsel for Intellectual Property for the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) and a Professor at Georgetown Law School, about the enormous potential negative consequences of the Biden Administration allowing the WTO to waive IP rights of mRNA technology, potentially creating huge negative consequences for U.S. innovation. Hans attended the WTO meeting and is considered one of the world’s leading patent attorneys in the biopharma sector.

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