Financialization, Intellectual Property Rights, and Global Wealth Chains in the Insulin Market

Abstract

This thesis investigates three leading insulin companies – Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk, and Sanofi – in the context of financialization, intellectual property rights, and Global Wealth Chains. Through these lenses, it seeks to provide an understanding of the broader political and economic determinants of high drug prices in the United States. Findings show that, although distinctive, the case of insulin prices is representative of a greater issue in global drug markets. Pharmaceutical manufacturers have been incentivized to rely on intellectual property portfolios made up of large quantities of patents to extend and maintain a monopolistic grasp on their markets. Moreover, contemporarily, many pharmaceutical MNCs operate based on highly financialized business models, according to which they are expected to continuously deliver short-term returns to their shareholders. This thesis seeks to contribute to the research agenda that studies pharmaceutical companies’ role in the issue of high prescription drug prices in the United States.