[A] Chinese drug company appears to have developed a successful treatment for Ebola, the use of which is being threatened by US researchers complaining about patent infringement. The basic story is that the Chinese company used information in a US patent to help develop their drug, which appears to be an effective treatment for Ebola. The patent holders are now upset that the Chinese company is making their drug widely available to Ebola victims, in some cases to people who would otherwise be taking part in controlled clinical trials…

Anyhow, it is difficult to believe that progress would not advance more rapidly if researchers did not try to bottle up their findings with patent protection. This is the sort of protection that will be increased in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). The impact of this protectionism in raising drug prices and impeding scientific progress has not been considered in the widely cited analysis of the TPP’s impact.

—Dean Baker
Ebola and How Patent Protection Impedes Innovation