A Complex Patent & Pricing Picture: Regulating Psychedelics More of a Journey Than a Trip
Pharma and legal experts weigh in on the rush to secure intellectual property around psychedelic medicines, the value imperative that should govern pricing strategies, and the likely long-haul battle for more widespread decriminalization of these drugs.
Psilocybin, DMT (N, N-dimethyltryptamine), and other psychedelics conjure images of tie-dyes with flamboyant colors, music with an improvisational bent, and other relics of hippie culture. Patent filings, regulations, and pharma pricing strategies may be as far removed from psychedelic counterculture as one can imagine.
However, research about the clinical benefits of psychedelics has set off hundreds of millions of dollars in investments. Companies are building an array of patents and other intellectual property (IP) tied to these potential medicines, which they hope to use to treat a range of unmet mental health needs.