Some of the biggest pharmaceutical firms in the nation are nearing the end of multibillion-dollar patent windfalls as their exclusive rights to produce Americans’ lifesaving medications and vaccines expire.

The patent cliff could spark a massive wave of new drug manufacturing mergers, leaving innovation and research on the shelf in exchange for more industry consolidation and the expansion of already bloated pharma giants — to the delight of cash-hungry venture capitalists.

When patents expire, low-priced generics and biosimilars enter the market and drive drug prices down. According to Deloitte analysts, Big Pharma could see $236 billion in revenue disappear by 2030, as exclusive patents for 190 high-earning drugs developed in the early 2000s hit their expiration date — including sixty-nine “blockbuster” medications generating over $1 billion each annually.