Personalized medicine: using effective partnering for managing the risk of legal liability

Beyond the economic cost-benefit analysis of incorporating pharmacogenomics into the process of drug development, it is time for the players in the industry to begin considering the long-term potential legal liabilities that may arise, and to undertake a legal analysis to identify and avoid those risks to the greatest possible extent. The current economic model being considered for pharmacogenomics technologies fails to take this legal risk into consideration, and therefore does not provide a complete picture of the incentives and disincentives of entering into this space. However, the more evenly weighted balance of all of the economic interests - costs, benefits and risks - can be tipped into the positive through effective partnering relationships between the pharmaceutical and diagnostic industries, and the diagnostic industry and pharmacy benefit managers. Such relationships will provide companies not only with needed economic incentives, but also with added protection from the potential future legal liabilities.