Anne Pritchett, PhD

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick recently proposed changing how the federal government funds scientific research at universities across the country. “I think if we fund it and [the universities] invent a patent, the United States of America taxpayer should get half” of the royalties when universities license those patents to private companies for further development, he suggested. Lutnick rightly wants to ensure that taxpayers get a good bang for their research buck. But the truth is, taxpayers already get a great return on the university research they fund. 

The Trump Administration is trying to counter China on nearly every strategic front, from the South China Sea to the factory floor. Yet the Administration, and Congress, haven’t yet done much to address one of America’s biggest vulnerabilities—the steady decline of our once world-class system of intellectual property (IP) rights.

Leaders across the political spectrum want America to be the global leader in advanced manufacturing—both to strengthen national security through more resilient supply chains and to grow the economy through high-wage jobs that replace ones lost to previous factory closures. Revitalizing American manufacturing won’t be easy. But it’s possible if our leaders look to the biotech sector—one of the global industries that we still unquestionably dominate—and follow its blueprint for success.