Save Bayh-Dole!

A new campaign seeks to #SaveBayhDole—plus, a few more things you need to know today, from D.C. to Texas to Mexico. (642 words, 3 minutes, 12 seconds)

Save Bayh-Dole!

The Bayh-Dole Act has supported the commercialization of innovations ranging from Google’s early algorithms to mRNA vaccines—but the Biden administration is threatening to undo 40 years of success with a proposal to use the law to control prices. The Bayh-Dole Coalition and leading tech transfer experts have launched a campaign to #SaveBayhDole.

The 1980 Bayh-Dole Act promotes innovation by allowing inventors, like universities and small businesses, to own and commercialize inventions made with federal funding support. The government can “march in” and give licensing rights to a third party—in limited circumstances—if an IP holder does not commercialize an invention that could benefit society.

What’s happening: The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is attempting to use the Bayh-Dole Act to “march in” and control drug prices—something BIO, bipartisan lawmakers, and American voters oppose.

“What has been proposed would basically upend the 40-some years of success under the Bayh-Dole Act by saying the price at which a product is offered is subject to the federal government marching in, as they say, and taking the product away from whoever is commercializing it, and giving it to someone else who could sell it at a lower price,” says the Council on Government Relations’ Bob Hardy.

But Bayh-Dole is clear: “March-in rights” have nothing to do with drug prices, experts told Bio.News.

Why it matters: “The proposed march-in framework that has been floated by the Biden administration is actually one of the most dangerous pieces of public policy that I’ve seen,” says Jon Soderstrom, who was head of tech transfer at Yale for 25 years. “Technologies, new products, new medicines that could transform the way we live will suddenly not be developed.”

Visit www.savebayhdole.org to let your officials know you oppose the NIST framework and share the content.

A few more things to know on Monday...

In a politically divided America, biotech has “a solid foundation for aligning bipartisan support around our goals,”says BIO President & CEO John F. Crowley in a wide-ranging interview with Investment Reports. He explains how we can get there, as well as why biotech is a strategic national security asset and why innovation and affordability “are not mutually exclusive.” 

U.S.-Mexico corn dispute could “transform American agriculture,”reports Epoch Health. “Given that GM seed is used in 90 percent of U.S. crops, the dispute could have far-reaching effects should Mexico win.” As Nancy Travis, BIO’s VP for International Affairs, told the publication, “Science-based, predictable regulation of trade in food and feed products is critical to ensuring the flow of trade that meets the world’s food needs.”

A CSBA leader will oversee the Texas healthcare workforce task force. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott named Victoria Ford as Chair of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) Healthcare Workforce Task Force to address workforce shortages. Ford is President and CEO of the Texas Healthcare and Bioscience Institute (THBI), the Texas Council of State Bioscience Associations (CSBA) member. 

Are you a life science entrepreneur in the fields of therapeutics or diagnostics ready to build and hone your business model, product development plan and commercialization strategy? Are you gearing up for Seed or Series A funding?

California Life Sciences is now accepting applications for the Fall cohort of its bi-annual advisory program, FAST California. Early-stage startups creating disruptive technologies with high medical impact are invited to apply by July 1, 2024. Click here to learn more.

President Biden’s Monday: Presenting the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy to the United States Military Academy Army football team, then having lunch with King Abdullah II of Jordan. This evening, he’ll host a Cinco de Mayo event at the White House.

What’s Happening on Capitol Hill: Election Day is six months away. The Senate aims to pass the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization bill this week, while the House Rules Committee will consider a number of bills today.