Medical devices and diagnostics are patent-dependent items, and companies may be able to avail themselves of extensions of their patents due to the time taken for FDA regulatory review. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office announced March 8 that it had granted Neovasc Medical Ltd. a one-year extension of the term of two patents for the company’s flagship Reducer device, thus giving the company one additional year of market exclusivity to obtain the FDA’s approval for the device.

New legislation providing a tax incentive for Australian medical innovations was introduced in Australia’s House of Representatives, and industry stakeholders are lauding the move.