Pharmaceuticals have improved and extended the lives of millions of people. But the many advances over the past couple of decades haven't come without controversy, much of it centering on the massive profits the industry makes on blockbuster drugs.

The drug makers say those profits fund the research that produces breakthrough treatments. They warn that with patents expiring on several big-money drugs, their ability to develop new drugs will be severely hampered. Longer-lasting patents, they say, would protect the profits that they need to keep innovative products moving through the pipeline.

Critics question that assumption. There's no proof, they say, of a link between patent life and innovation. In their view, drug companies focus on developing the most marketable drugs instead of the most urgently needed medications. So extending patents would serve mainly to boost drug companies' profits, not to encourage the innovation needed to address the world's unmet medical needs.

Yes: Innovation Demands It

By Josh Bloom