Tahir Amin
@tahiramin.bsky.social
CEO @imakglobal.bsky.social. Renegade IP lawyer. Critically rethinking IP laws through (neo)colonial/neoliberal systems of power, and that empty word “innovation”.
Pinned
Tahir Amin
@tahiramin.bsky.social
· Jun 17
🚨NEW: Today we published a new Overpatented, Overpriced report and launched an expanded and updated version of The Drug Patent Book, our searchable database of every patent we've uncovered on many of the most widely-used drugs in the U.S.
Our team at @imakglobal.bsky.social just released two new products. What we’re seeing is a patent system that is giving drug companies far too many ways to extend their monopolies and maximize profits while utterly failing to uphold the social contract it was meant to serve.
TrumpRx and a most-favored nation policy won’t lower drug prices for patients. We need a government that is willing to stand up to corporate interests and actually become a most favored nation for patients, not pharmaceutical profits.
New op-ed for @statnews.com ↓
www.statnews.com/2025/10/24/t...
New op-ed for @statnews.com ↓
www.statnews.com/2025/10/24/t...
TrumpRx and a most favored nation policy won’t lower prices for patients
TrumpRx and a most-favored nation policy won’t lower prices for patients, writes the CEO and co-founder of I-MAK.
www.statnews.com
October 27, 2025 at 9:57 PM
TrumpRx and a most-favored nation policy won’t lower drug prices for patients. We need a government that is willing to stand up to corporate interests and actually become a most favored nation for patients, not pharmaceutical profits.
New op-ed for @statnews.com ↓
www.statnews.com/2025/10/24/t...
New op-ed for @statnews.com ↓
www.statnews.com/2025/10/24/t...
Reposted by Tahir Amin
Looking forward to this conversation about drug prices next week!
JOIN US! On Wednesday, October 22 at 10AM ET we will host a webinar to discuss results from a new national survey revealing bipartisan momentum for patent system reform.
Speakers: @tahiramin.bsky.social, @welch.senate.gov, Berwood Yost, @emilypisacreta.bsky.social
RSVP! www.i-mak.org/survey/
Speakers: @tahiramin.bsky.social, @welch.senate.gov, Berwood Yost, @emilypisacreta.bsky.social
RSVP! www.i-mak.org/survey/
October 17, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Looking forward to this conversation about drug prices next week!
Reposted by Tahir Amin
Did you RSVP to our webinar?
A new national survey reveals bipartisan support for patent system reforms
🗓️ Wednesday, October 22
🕙 10AM ET
🗣️ @tahiramin.bsky.social, @welch.senate.gov, Berwood Yost, @emilypisacreta.bsky.social
🎟️ www.i-mak.org/survey/
A new national survey reveals bipartisan support for patent system reforms
🗓️ Wednesday, October 22
🕙 10AM ET
🗣️ @tahiramin.bsky.social, @welch.senate.gov, Berwood Yost, @emilypisacreta.bsky.social
🎟️ www.i-mak.org/survey/
October 19, 2025 at 9:01 PM
Did you RSVP to our webinar?
A new national survey reveals bipartisan support for patent system reforms
🗓️ Wednesday, October 22
🕙 10AM ET
🗣️ @tahiramin.bsky.social, @welch.senate.gov, Berwood Yost, @emilypisacreta.bsky.social
🎟️ www.i-mak.org/survey/
A new national survey reveals bipartisan support for patent system reforms
🗓️ Wednesday, October 22
🕙 10AM ET
🗣️ @tahiramin.bsky.social, @welch.senate.gov, Berwood Yost, @emilypisacreta.bsky.social
🎟️ www.i-mak.org/survey/
Reposted by Tahir Amin
JOIN US! On Wednesday, October 22 at 10AM ET we will host a webinar to discuss results from a new national survey revealing bipartisan momentum for patent system reform.
Speakers: @tahiramin.bsky.social, @welch.senate.gov, Berwood Yost, @emilypisacreta.bsky.social
RSVP! www.i-mak.org/survey/
Speakers: @tahiramin.bsky.social, @welch.senate.gov, Berwood Yost, @emilypisacreta.bsky.social
RSVP! www.i-mak.org/survey/
October 17, 2025 at 6:13 PM
JOIN US! On Wednesday, October 22 at 10AM ET we will host a webinar to discuss results from a new national survey revealing bipartisan momentum for patent system reform.
Speakers: @tahiramin.bsky.social, @welch.senate.gov, Berwood Yost, @emilypisacreta.bsky.social
RSVP! www.i-mak.org/survey/
Speakers: @tahiramin.bsky.social, @welch.senate.gov, Berwood Yost, @emilypisacreta.bsky.social
RSVP! www.i-mak.org/survey/
Gilead signed voluntary licensing deals that will allow six manufacturers to sell generic versions of the HIV treatment lenacapavir in 120 low- and lower-middle-income countries. At first glance, this may look like equity. It’s not. 🧵 www.vox.com/future-perfe...
The only thing standing between humanity and the end of HIV
Even Trump is fast-tracking this innovative new drug. What could go wrong?
www.vox.com
October 17, 2025 at 4:55 PM
Gilead signed voluntary licensing deals that will allow six manufacturers to sell generic versions of the HIV treatment lenacapavir in 120 low- and lower-middle-income countries. At first glance, this may look like equity. It’s not. 🧵 www.vox.com/future-perfe...
Reposted by Tahir Amin
The IP system is failing to deliver innovation, access, and better health in so many innovative ways…
At what point does combining an existing biologic drug with a form of hyaluronidase to create an injectable formulation become obvious?🧵
October 15, 2025 at 10:31 PM
The IP system is failing to deliver innovation, access, and better health in so many innovative ways…
At what point does combining an existing biologic drug with a form of hyaluronidase to create an injectable formulation become obvious?🧵
October 15, 2025 at 10:26 PM
At what point does combining an existing biologic drug with a form of hyaluronidase to create an injectable formulation become obvious?🧵
A strong case by Lucy Xiaolu Wang for why clinical trial data should be part of the patent examination process.
theconversation.com/some-new-dru...
theconversation.com/some-new-dru...
Some new drugs aren’t actually ‘new’ – pharmaceutical companies exploit patents and raise prices for patients, but data transparency can help protect innovation
By extending their monopoly on a drug, companies prevent generics and other competitors from driving down prices. But increasing transparency can help prevent Big Pharma from gaming the patent system.
theconversation.com
October 13, 2025 at 11:12 PM
A strong case by Lucy Xiaolu Wang for why clinical trial data should be part of the patent examination process.
theconversation.com/some-new-dru...
theconversation.com/some-new-dru...
Hyaluronidase (the ingredient Merck added to create the SC version of Keytruda) has been used by plenty of other companies to enable SC delivery. It’s not exactly something that wasn’t known…
October 13, 2025 at 11:01 PM
Hyaluronidase (the ingredient Merck added to create the SC version of Keytruda) has been used by plenty of other companies to enable SC delivery. It’s not exactly something that wasn’t known…
Subcutaneous versions of IV drugs often launch right around the time that IV patents expire. What a mysterious phenomenon…
October 6, 2025 at 5:24 PM
Subcutaneous versions of IV drugs often launch right around the time that IV patents expire. What a mysterious phenomenon…
Merck has made billions off patients who take Keytruda. Now, just as its primary patents are about to expire (in 2028) Merck tweaks Keytruda's delivery and gets to restart its monopoly all over again.
www.biospace.com/fda/as-exclu...
www.biospace.com/fda/as-exclu...
As Exclusivity Loss Looms, Merck Wins Subcutaneous Approval for Keytruda
For the last two years, Keytruda has reigned as the world’s top-selling drug—a distinction under threat with key patent protections expiring in 2028.
www.biospace.com
September 26, 2025 at 4:50 PM
Merck has made billions off patients who take Keytruda. Now, just as its primary patents are about to expire (in 2028) Merck tweaks Keytruda's delivery and gets to restart its monopoly all over again.
www.biospace.com/fda/as-exclu...
www.biospace.com/fda/as-exclu...
Reposted by Tahir Amin
Merck is launching a patent-protected injectable version of Keytruda before biosimilars of the IV version of Keytruda enter the market.
Swipe to see reactions to the recent @nytimes.com story on Merck's product hopping scheme.
Swipe to see reactions to the recent @nytimes.com story on Merck's product hopping scheme.
September 24, 2025 at 9:39 PM
Merck is launching a patent-protected injectable version of Keytruda before biosimilars of the IV version of Keytruda enter the market.
Swipe to see reactions to the recent @nytimes.com story on Merck's product hopping scheme.
Swipe to see reactions to the recent @nytimes.com story on Merck's product hopping scheme.
Reposted by Tahir Amin
“Merck is just the latest in a long line of drug companies that have introduced new versions of their medicines that allow them to keep charging high prices [to patients] even as their original patents expire.”
www.seattletimes.com/nation-world...
www.seattletimes.com/nation-world...
A new shot for cancer is convenient, but poised to keep prices high
To keep Keytruda revenue flowing, Merck developed a new version of the cancer treatment drug, given as a shot under the skin, which the FDA approved Friday.
www.seattletimes.com
September 24, 2025 at 9:23 PM
“Merck is just the latest in a long line of drug companies that have introduced new versions of their medicines that allow them to keep charging high prices [to patients] even as their original patents expire.”
www.seattletimes.com/nation-world...
www.seattletimes.com/nation-world...
The patents protecting Keytruda’s key ingredients were filed in 2008 and expire in 2028. Now Merck is changing the way Keytruda is delivered (from an IV to an injection) to effectively restart its monopoly just as it's about to end.
Big news for a blockbuster drug -- Merck won approval for an easier-to-use Keytruda. Damian Garde has the details >
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Merck Wins US Approval of Easier-to-Use Version of Cancer Drug Keytruda
Merck & Co. won US approval for a novel version of its widely used cancer drug Keytruda that’s faster to give, a key component of the marketing strategy for one of the world’s best-selling medicin...
www.bloomberg.com
September 24, 2025 at 9:20 PM
The patents protecting Keytruda’s key ingredients were filed in 2008 and expire in 2028. Now Merck is changing the way Keytruda is delivered (from an IV to an injection) to effectively restart its monopoly just as it's about to end.
When facts are not on your side, desperation sets in 🙃
September 19, 2025 at 10:45 PM
When facts are not on your side, desperation sets in 🙃
My team at @imakglobal.bsky.social has been warning for years that Merck would game the patent system to product hop its blockbuster cancer drug Keytruda. Today, the New York Times published an investigation into the company’s tactics.
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/19/h...
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/19/h...
A New Shot for Cancer Is Convenient, but Poised to Keep Prices High
www.nytimes.com
September 19, 2025 at 10:26 PM
My team at @imakglobal.bsky.social has been warning for years that Merck would game the patent system to product hop its blockbuster cancer drug Keytruda. Today, the New York Times published an investigation into the company’s tactics.
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/19/h...
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/19/h...
Reposted by Tahir Amin
Our September newsletter is out! In it, @tahiramin.bsky.social breaks down two bipartisan bills seeking to address patent abuse so medicines can be more affordable for patients
📄The ETHIC Act
📄The Medication Affordability and Patent Integrity Act
www.i-mak.org/2025/09/18/s...
📄The ETHIC Act
📄The Medication Affordability and Patent Integrity Act
www.i-mak.org/2025/09/18/s...
Sept 2025: Two bipartisan bills target patent abuse
Building a more just and equitable medicines system for all
www.i-mak.org
September 18, 2025 at 6:18 PM
Our September newsletter is out! In it, @tahiramin.bsky.social breaks down two bipartisan bills seeking to address patent abuse so medicines can be more affordable for patients
📄The ETHIC Act
📄The Medication Affordability and Patent Integrity Act
www.i-mak.org/2025/09/18/s...
📄The ETHIC Act
📄The Medication Affordability and Patent Integrity Act
www.i-mak.org/2025/09/18/s...
Excellent piece in @nature.com on biologics platform patents and how they can stall/block biosimilars by Osmat Azzam Jefferson, W. Nicholson Price II, @seansst5.bsky.social, Saurabh Vishnubhakat, and Arti Rai.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
The puzzle of biologics manufacturing platform patents - Nature Biotechnology
The predominance of manufacturing process patents asserted in litigation by originator biologics companies against would-be biosimilar entrants has resulted in a number of Congressional and administra...
www.nature.com
August 29, 2025 at 12:24 PM
Excellent piece in @nature.com on biologics platform patents and how they can stall/block biosimilars by Osmat Azzam Jefferson, W. Nicholson Price II, @seansst5.bsky.social, Saurabh Vishnubhakat, and Arti Rai.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
“History will not remember how profitable our cures were, only how many were left to die waiting for them.”
- Jonathan Lee, B.A., B.S., UC Berkeley
www.bcphreview.org/article/1412...
- Jonathan Lee, B.A., B.S., UC Berkeley
www.bcphreview.org/article/1412...
The Price of Survival: Ethical Failures and Pharmaceutical Profit in the U.S. Drug Market | Published in Boston Congress of Public Health Review (BCPHR, Formerly HPHR)
By Jonathan Lee. The authors call for reforms of the U.S. drug market, calling for changes in price negotiation, transparency, and patent law. They argue the proposed measures support public health.
www.bcphreview.org
August 27, 2025 at 9:36 PM
“History will not remember how profitable our cures were, only how many were left to die waiting for them.”
- Jonathan Lee, B.A., B.S., UC Berkeley
www.bcphreview.org/article/1412...
- Jonathan Lee, B.A., B.S., UC Berkeley
www.bcphreview.org/article/1412...
A powerful indictment of America’s pharmaceutical system from a next-generation leader. Excellent work, Jonathan Lee.
www.bcphreview.org/article/1412...
www.bcphreview.org/article/1412...
The Price of Survival: Ethical Failures and Pharmaceutical Profit in the U.S. Drug Market | Published in Boston Congress of Public Health Review (BCPHR, Formerly HPHR)
By Jonathan Lee. The authors call for reforms of the U.S. drug market, calling for changes in price negotiation, transparency, and patent law. They argue the proposed measures support public health.
www.bcphreview.org
August 27, 2025 at 9:28 PM
A powerful indictment of America’s pharmaceutical system from a next-generation leader. Excellent work, Jonathan Lee.
www.bcphreview.org/article/1412...
www.bcphreview.org/article/1412...
From dodging domestic taxes to abusing the patent system to price gouging patients in the U.S and abroad. The list is endless. No one is better at ripping off the public than multinational pharma companies.
August 20, 2025 at 9:40 PM
From dodging domestic taxes to abusing the patent system to price gouging patients in the U.S and abroad. The list is endless. No one is better at ripping off the public than multinational pharma companies.
PhRMA is teaming up with other industry mouthpieces including IP Watchdog and IP law firms to host a panel smearing I-MAK. I guess branded drug companies don’t like having their go-to monopolization tactics exposed.🧵
August 20, 2025 at 8:37 PM
PhRMA is teaming up with other industry mouthpieces including IP Watchdog and IP law firms to host a panel smearing I-MAK. I guess branded drug companies don’t like having their go-to monopolization tactics exposed.🧵
Reposted by Tahir Amin
AbbVie used its patent thicket to block six competitors from launching cheaper versions of a $220,000 cancer drug.
August 14, 2025 at 5:25 PM
AbbVie used its patent thicket to block six competitors from launching cheaper versions of a $220,000 cancer drug.
Patent reform. An issue with growing bipartisan support.
July 29, 2025 at 6:19 PM
Patent reform. An issue with growing bipartisan support.
Reposted by Tahir Amin
NEWS: Senators @welch.senate.gov (D-VT), Josh Hawley (R-MO), and @klobuchar.senate.gov (D-MN) introduced the Eliminating Thickets to Improve Competition (ETHIC) Act.
So, what is the ETHIC Act?🧵
So, what is the ETHIC Act?🧵
July 28, 2025 at 4:15 PM
NEWS: Senators @welch.senate.gov (D-VT), Josh Hawley (R-MO), and @klobuchar.senate.gov (D-MN) introduced the Eliminating Thickets to Improve Competition (ETHIC) Act.
So, what is the ETHIC Act?🧵
So, what is the ETHIC Act?🧵