Should there be boundaries to patentable subject matter? What happens if the patents stifle innovation, rather than promoting it? How should we proceed if patents negatively influence health care, rather than enhancing it? The panel will discuss these questions by focusing on the controversy over patents on the breast and ovarian cancer (BRCA) genes, which led to a current ACLU class-action lawsuit against the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and Myriad Genetics.
