Use Of Generic Prescription Drugs Increasing As Patents Expire On Blockbuster Medications; Trend Expected To Reduce Overall Drug Spending
August 24th, 2007 by 
Barry - Admin BioPharmArena
As patents expire over the next five years for brand-name prescription drugs with more than $60 billion in combined annual sales, some health care experts predict that new generic equivalents will maintain single-digit drug price inflation for U.S. consumers, the New York Times reports. Generic drugs typically are 30% to 80% less expensive than brand-name versions, contain the same active ingredients and are approved by FDA under the same standards as brand-name drugs.
Expiring patent protection for some drugs, such as Sanofi-Aventis‘ sleeping pill Ambien, has been cutting into brand-name manufacturers’ revenue, and several blockbuster drugs are set to face generic competition over the next five years, including Fosamax, a drug that slows bone loss, and the cholesterol-lowering drug Lipitor, the Times reports. Some companies, such as pharmacy benefit manager Express Scripts, and Medicare prescription drug plans are encouraging use of generics by lowering copayments for the drugs versus their brand-name equivalent.
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