US preeminence in the pharmaceutical industry is under threat, two experts argued.
Drug discovery was once led by private companies, but now half of new patents stem from academia, with US institutions accounting for 87% of those, Kevin Gardner and Michael Kinch wrote in STAT News.
That dominance allows the US to attract the world’s best scientists. But US institutions beset by cuts and competition could soon find their own researchers being poached, Kinch and Gardner warned: 75% of scientists polled say they are considering leaving the US.
Trump administration cuts means federal research faces cuts of up to 40%, while China is using its increasing clout to woo talent: It accounted for 33% of drug patents in Q3 2024.
AD