STAT+: RFK Jr. says U.S. won't threaten pharmaceutical patents to push for lower drug prices

WASHINGTON — Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, doesn’t think that high drug prices are a reason to undermine pharmaceutical companies’ patent rights, he told senators following his confirmation hearings.

Whether or not to allow the National Institutes of Health to more broadly use so-called “march-in rights” — a policy that allows it to invalidate patent rights from drugmakers whose products rely on federally funded research — has been a controversial issue across several administrations. The authority has never been used on the basis of a drug’s price.

In response to a question from Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) about whether he supported using march-in rights to lower drug prices, RFK Jr. said that, “would not be an appropriate use of march-in rights,” according to responses obtained by STAT.

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