Far Out: The Extended Denial of Public Access to Psychedelic Therapeutics
Texas A&M Journal of Property Law April 1, 2024 Andrew R. Waldeck
The US patent system aims to promote innovation by granting inventors a temporary monopoly in exchange for full disclosure of their invention, which then becomes freely available to the public after the patent expires. For medical advances, this system typically leads to lower drug prices once patents expire, as competitors enter the market. However, the Controlled Substances Act and related laws have artificially blocked research into psychedelic compounds for medical use, delaying public access to potentially beneficial therapies that have a long history of human use.