alt Hacker NewsCould explain how a compound that's already on the market and has been patented for (some) medical use at least once in 2015 (expiring 2035) might make a good case for "Big Pharma gigabucks"? I thought one reason for a lack of research into "repurposablity" of existing small molecule drugs is the fact that new applications cannot be independently patented?
You absolutely can patent existing drugs. There's a whole scummy pharma industry that takes existing drugs that are widely used off-label and patents that off-label use.