Patent Law and Public Health Policy: A Fireside Chat with Sapna Kumar

Originally presented:  December 4, 2025     |     Course length:  1.0 hour

Join us for a thought-provoking fireside chat with patent scholar Sapna Kumar in conversation with FDA regulatory expert Ralph Hall and patent program director Chris Turoski. Learn about Professor Kumar’s groundbreaking research and policy work at the intersection of intellectual property law and public health, including –

• How the patent rights that promote new drug development for pandemics can also cause drug shortages during public health emergencies;
• Why compulsory licensing of patents is only a partial solution; and
• What governments can do to prevent drug scarcity in future pandemics.

Don’t miss this engaging discussion on how legal frameworks could better support access to medicine, public health preparedness, and scientific integrity.

– Sapna Kumar; Henry J. Fletcher Professor of Law, University of Minnesota Law School
– Ralph F. Hall; Hall Strategies, LLC. Saline, Michigan (moderator)
– Christopher M. Turoski; Director & Assistant Professor of Patent Law, University of Minnesota Law School (moderator)