A US study of 1,981 FDA-approved drugs found that the average number of patents per drug rose from 2.1 in 1990 to 6.9 in 2019, extending market exclusivity by about six years.

the verdict

SUPPORTED

the evidence backs this

Recorded sources

3 sources for · 0 against

Counts group repeated records of the same source within each side. They do not measure evidence strength or source independence.

Is it true that a US study of 1,981 FDA-approved drugs found that the average number of patents per drug rose from 2.1 in 1990 to 6.9 in 2019, extending market exclusivity by about six years?

Yes. A peer-reviewed JAMA study of 1,981 FDA-approved small-molecule drugs (1990-2019) reports that the mean number of patents per drug rose from 2.1 in 1990 to 6.9 in 2019, with nonprimary patents extending market exclusivity by a mean of 6.1 years.

Verdict: SUPPORTED · 3 sources for, 0 against · Last checked 2 Oct 2026

The private library was unavailable for some searches in this check. Missing library results are not evidence against the claim.

Evidence for · 3

Patent and Marketing Exclusivities 101 for Drug Developers -

Get citation

Patent and Marketing Exclusivities 101 for Drug Developers - PMC Lock. (n.d.). pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. https://doi.org/10.2174/1872208317666230111105223

See more details

More for · 2

Patents on Small-Molecule Drugs Approved by the US Food and Drug Administration, 1990-2019

2026

Get citation

Tu, S. S., Freeman, N., Teng, T. W., Feldman, W. B., Kesselheim, A. S., Parton, J., & Wouters, O. J. (2026). Patents on Small-Molecule Drugs Approved by the US Food and Drug Administration, 1990-2019. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2026.16139

Changes in the Number of Continuation Patents on Drugs Approved by the FDA

2023

Get citation

Tu, S. S., Kesselheim, A. S., Wetherbee, K., & Feldman, W. B. (2023). Changes in the Number of Continuation Patents on Drugs Approved by the FDA. doi.org. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2023.11525

Receipt History

Anyone with this link can read the claim and its public receipt, including any personal information in that text. Open permanent receipt.

Check your own claim

Challenge the receipt

I have a source that contradicts this verdict I have a source that supports it No source: request a receipt review Requests are recorded for review. This does not start an automatic check or guarantee a response time.

Citation formatting by citeproc-js (Frank Bennett) and the Citation Style Language project. Source and licenses.

This receipt is an automated verdict against our published method · not an opinion about any author or publication.
Terms · Privacy · How verdicts work