COVID-19 remained an area of rapid innovation in 2021.
Regulators continued
rapid approval of new drugs, vaccines and diagnostics. Their
work involves careful balancing of safety, efficacy and
speed.
Development and approval of vaccines was the key story that came
to fruition in late 2020. The past year was about getting behind
covid
vaccine innovators to ensure increased deployment.
A big public health and innovation story of 2021 was the
increased deployment of
diagnostics for screening people that may have COVID-19. The
FDA has now authorized over 400 COVID-19 related tests and
collection kits. Beneath the veneer of simplicity in
operation is the integration of a myriad of different
technologies. Patents help provide a link that helps
differentiate new technologies and provide a return on the cost of
test kit innovation and development. Potentially patentable
aspects may include high-tech aspects of diagnostic systems, such
as analysis methods or high
