The World - News from Nov. 22, 1987

Rather than provoke a constitutional crisis, Liberal Party members controlling the Canadian Senate withdrew their opposition and permitted Parliament to pass legislation designed to protect drug manufacturers from generic competition. Had the opposition Liberals sent the bill back to the House of Commons for a third time, the legislation would have died, and the will of the elected Commons would have been overridden by the 104-member appointed Senate for the first time in modern history. The Senate traditionally limits its role to amending or delaying bills. The bill gives U.S. and multinational producers of brand-name drugs 10 years of patent protection from generic competition.