Yesterday John Goodman posted a link about pharmaceutical companies gaming the patent system. The following is an excerpt from the American Institute for Economic Research:
Senator Bernie Sanders isn’t right about much, but he is about one thing: The United States pays too much for prescription drugs.
… [t]here are also many bad US government policies putting upward pressure on domestic drug prices.
The fundamental issue is that there is no free market in the drug industry. It’s been steadily eroded by regulators and lawmakers, often at the behest and to the benefit of drug manufacturers, resulting in their ability to charge prices well over what a competitive market would allow.
Much of the blame for a lack of market competition can also be attributed to a U.S. patent system that is too easily gamed and exploited by drug companies.