An Alternative Reward Mechanism for Medical Innovation

Patenting and other rewards that rely on protected markets to encourage research investment in medical technology do not always provide the right incentives needed to optimize public health. In recent years, a number of proposals have focused on replacing or supplementing the patent system and related incentives with a mechanism that rewards medical research based on its value to human health — as opposed to its value in the marketplace. This panel examined the potential and suitability of prize funds as a mechanism that would offer pharmaceutical innovators a supplementary reward based on the health impact of their products. Panelists discussed various prize proposals and debated the potential interactions between prize funds and patenting and other market-based reward mechanisms in the context of health innovation. Panelists included HLS Professors Yochai Benkler and William Fisher, Aidan Hollis of the University of Toronto, and Kevin Outterson of Boston University School of Law.