[LocalH]

Medical information has other relevant concerns besides who "owns" it. As a matter of fact, it can be hard (if not impossible) for an individual to receive a copy of their own medical records. There are privacy concerns that simply don't often apply to the types of data which are usually referred to as "intellectual property" (software, music, movies, literature).

"Intellectual property", as a term, also serves to further layman confusion on the topic. I can't count on all my appendages the number of times I've spoken to an average person (whether in person or via the internet) where they've said something about "copyrighting" a business name or other trademark. Let's call "intellectual property" what it really is - copyrights, trademarks, and patents. Each of those has a completely different framework of regulation and philosophy, and it doesn't really serve us to lump them all together into one term for most productive discourse on the topic.