Drug patents could be Canada’s special weapon in U.S. trade dispute

All’s fair in love and war, some interesting thoughts regarding the upcoming trade war with the United States Amir Attaran believes Canada should threaten to target U.S. pharmaceutical patents right away. You can read the article for yourself by clicking the link below: http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/second-opinion-trade-dispute-canada-us-drug-patents-intellectual-property-1.4708630

I have to admit I was surprised to see this article on the CBC website, but hey, I guess I’ve seen worse. Kelly Crowe writes

“Taking an ‘asymmetrical’ approach and targeting U.S. intellectual property has worked in the past, experts say”

Using Luke Skywalker famously blew up the Death Star in the first Star Wars movie was how she began her article, I don’t mind fighting fire with fire, but targeting U.S. intellectual property? Wow, Isn’t that the problem the U.S is having with China right now? Does Canada really want to take this approach?

if Canada took action to suspend American patents on Canadian soil. Canadian companies would then be able to produce those drugs.

Now, I’m a blogger, I don’t think people would mind if I wrote something like this, but the CBC is a crown corporation and the mere thought of suspending American patents on Canadian soil, well that right there is an act of war that American companies won’t take to lightly, in Canada we do have a universal health care system that’s heavily reliant on high paid humans to maintain, if Canada is going to take an immoral stance like this one, they better make sure that they know exactly what the pharmaceutical lobby in the U.S will do.

This could actually have the adverse effect on Canada, the pharmaceutical lobby might go public and not so Patriotic Americans may actually become patriotic and back Trump, the American media machine is a funny animal, don’t assume they’re not funding CNN, FOX News, MSNBC and ABC, these pharmaceutical lobbies may actually run advertisements nationwide writing about Canada breaking patent rights.

Although the writers of this CBC might be looking at things from a pharmaceutical perspective, what’s not being talking about enough in this article are PATENT RIGHTS!. If private companies all over the world view Canada as a country that doesn’t respect PATENT RIGHTS, well we’ve just opened up a whole new can of worms that go beyond tariffs.

I’m all for winning a trade war and all but I advise the Canadian 4th estate to be careful with what they publish.

Interesting times ahead