The Patent Status Database for Selected HIV Medicines

The Medicines Patent Pool’s patent database provides information on the patent status of selected HIV medicines in low- and middle-income countries. It enables users to search by country/region and by medicine to obtain information on the key patents relating to each medicine. Wherever a patent has been applied for or granted in a given jurisdiction, the relevant patent number is also provided if available. The database is periodically updated to add new medicines and countries, and as the Pool receives new data.

Scroll down to search the Patent Status Database
or download the latest version here: Patent Table 4 February 2013 [xls]

The data in this database was obtained from and cross-checked between a variety of sources, including many local patent offices that agreed to make this information available via the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

The information in the database should not be considered a complete and authoritative source of patent information on antiretrovirals. It provides a snapshot at a particular point in time based on the information that was available to the Medicines Patent Pool and includes only some of the patents relating to each antiretroviral. The Medicines Patent Pool does not accept any responsibility for the accuracy of data nor guarantee that it is complete or up-to-date.

It is also important for users to bear in mind that a full understanding of the situation in a given country with respect to a specific antiretroviral would require additional information that is not provided in this database.  This could include, for example, whether any licenses have been granted in relation to the patents, whether the country is a Least Developed Country (LDC) and may benefit from the transition period under international intellectual property and trade agreements, or whether the country is making use of any of the flexibilities available under those agreements.

Explanatory notes to the database and acknowledgments are available here.

The Pool will endeavor to update and improve the database on a regular basis. By making information we have obtained publicly available to others we also hope that others will help us improve on what we have. We invite users to submit any information that would be useful for updating or improving the database by writing to: gro.looptnetapsenicidemnull@eciffo.

Further resources

For more information on how to find patent status data related to medicines, see the World Health Organization publication How to Conduct Patent Searches for Medicines: A Step-by-Step Guide [pdf], or the UN Development Programme’s publication A Methodology for Patent Searches on Essential Medicines in Developing Countries. The WHO Drug Regulatory Status database is also a useful resource for assessing how competitive country markets are for sustained and affordable access to ARVs.

For more on how to address intellectual property issues in the procurement of medicines for HIV, see Battling HIV/AIDS: A Decision Maker’s Guide to the Procurement of Medicines and Related Supplies [pdf] by the World Bank and the United Nations Development Programme Good Practice Guide: Improving Access to Treatment by Utilizing Public Health Flexibilities in the WTO TRIPS Agreement [pdf]. An additional resource is WIPO document Patent Related Flexibilities in the Multilateral Legal Framework and their Legislative Implementation at the National and Regional Levels. WIPO also released a patent landscape for ritonavir in October 2011, and on atazanavir in November 2011. The ritonavir landscape is available here [pdf], and the atazanavir landscape is available here [pdf].

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To search the database, select countries and medicines below. Use Ctrl + click (Cmd + click) or Shift + Click to select multiple variables. Not selecting anything will search all variables.