TPP Agreement Is a Mixed Bag, Says ITIF

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement will prove pivotal for the future of global trade and innovation because its provisions both establish the terms of competition in innovation industries and set the bar for all other US trade negotiations going forward. When it comes to technology policy, we are happy to say that the agreement sets a high bar that will maximize the opportunity for innovation worldwide. Unfortunately, for the life science sectors, negotiators have settled on a low bar that will be detrimental to biotechnology innovation, and ultimately patient health outcomes, for years to come.

Insufficient protections for other types of intellectual property still remain -- particularly for clinical trial data for biologic medicines. US law, passed on a bipartisan basis, establishes 12 years of protection for this data, but unfortunately the TPP agreement settled for a five- to eight-year window. While we are pleased to see some other nations raising their standards closer to US law in recognition of the importance of protecting intellectual property, five to eight years is simply not sufficient. Europe grants at least 10 years of data protection, so this new agreement puts America behind the eight ball when it comes to competing with European nations. Moreover, weaker standards will slow the rate of global biomedical innovation. While the TPP agreement may include five to eight years of protection, we strongly urge Congress to retain 12 years as US.law. As Congress begins to review this new framework, we implore lawmakers to remember the importance of having a high-standard agreement that sets the bar for all future global trade agreements. Global economic growth and the innovation economy depend on it.