George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School

CPIP & ITIF Launch “Innovate4Health” Policy Research Initiative

Innovate4HealthIn celebration of World Intellectual Property Day on April 26, 2017, the Center for the Protection of Intellectual Property (CPIP) today joined with the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) to launch “Innovate4Health,” a joint project to promote the critical role that intellectual property rights play in spurring innovative solutions to pressing global health challenges.

People all over the world live better than ever before thanks to innovation. New medicines prevent or alleviate disease. New devices diagnose problems, repair bodies, and overcome physical challenges. Still other inventions keep vaccines and medicines fresh and effective or ensure their authenticity. New business models help innovation to happen and ensure that it reaches those who need it.

Many of these innovations are secured by intellectual property rights, which support the ability of innovators to invent and bring solutions to market. Property rights, particularly intellectual property rights, foster the freedom of many hands and many minds to work on challenging problems. They put decisions in the hands of those closest to problems — innovators with knowledge of potential solutions and caregivers and consumers who understand their own needs best. They fund individual careers and industries dedicated to fixing health problems, as well as the businesses that get these solutions to individuals.

Our Innovate4Health project is providing case studies that describe how IP-driven innovation is tackling some of the world’s toughest health issues, including:

• A cooler that ensures vaccines are safe in areas without power;
• A portable eye examination kit to move care out of the office and into the field;
Retractable syringes to prevent needlestick injuries;
• A baby warmer that can adapt to volatile electricity conditions;
Point-of-care testing for malaria that anyone can use;
• A smartphone app that instantly checks the authenticity of pharmaceutical drugs; and
• A new anti-inflammatory drug derived from Brazil’s diverse ecology.

Learn more about Innovate4Health here.