U.S. trade watchdog drops Israel from watch list

Israel and the United States Trade Representative struck a deal that will remove Israel from the USTR watch list.

Israel was on the Special 301 Priority Watch List, which monitors international intellectual property, because of a disagreement over protections of pharmaceuticals.

Israel had allowed the manufacture of generic drugs five years after a patented drug was approved for use, which the USTR cited among other violations.

Under the new agreement announced last week, foreign companies can market their product exclusively for a longer period of time in Israel and will receive commercial incentive to introduce new drugs into the Israeli health care system in a timely fashion. When the drug’s patent expires in either the United States or Europe, Israeli generic companies can begin manufacturing. — jta