Dear AuntMinnie Member,
A start-up company called MD Scientific is testing the waters of patent protection in medicine. The firm is asking U.S. hospitals to pay royalties for a method patent it owns involving the use of commonly available materials to prevent kidney failure following contrast media administration.
MD Scientific began sending out letters to U.S. hospitals in March announcing that it had received a patent on the use of sodium bicarbonate prior to administration of iodated contrast. Clinicians have found that sodium bicarbonate can have a protective effect against contrast-induced nephropathy.
The firm believes that facilities using sodium bicarbonate should pay royalties based on licensing its patent. The company is also developing a proprietary sodium bicarbonate drug that it plans to market once regulatory approvals are received.
But there are legal issues regarding method patents in healthcare that have some hospitals consulting their attorneys. Recent federal law, as well as some court decisions, offer healthcare practitioners some leeway in how they use commonly available materials in treating patients.
Staff writer Wayne Forrest examines both sides of the issue in an article on the topic, which you can read by clicking here.
