Is there a difference between brand-name & generic prescription drugs?

Question

If so..what?? If not why do the generic cost less??

Answer 1

There certainly is a difference between generic and brand-name prescription drugs. Sometimes the difference will not have any effect on you, other times it may. The active ingredients in the drug will be the same. However, the fillers and bonding agents may not be. The reason this matters is that your body may absorb the drug differently depending on those factors. For example, I took a brand-name medication for years and was fine. Then my pharmacy gave me the generic, and I got sick to my stomach. My doctor said this was due to the coating on the pill and the way in which it dissolved. The active ingredient was then absorbed more quickly, and made me sick. Since this experience, I always buy the brand-name prescription medication. It is worth it to me to ensure that the active ingredients are absorbed as they are intended.

Answer 2

The price is the difference really.
What exactly is a generic drug?
A. A generic drug is an FDA-approved, chemically identical version of a brand-name drug. To receive this approval and be considered both safe and effective, a generic medication must contain identical amounts of the same active drug ingredients—in the same dosage form and strength—as its brand-name counterpart and be shown to work the same way in the body.

Why are brand-name medications so much more
expensive than generics?
A. The research and development costs of a new medication are quite high.
Manufacturers recoup those costs by passing them along to the consumer in the drug’s price. A new brand-name drug is protected for many years by a patent, which gives the drug company exclusive rights to manufacture the drug.
Once the patent on that drug expires, however, other drug companies are permitted to manufacture a generic equivalent. Since the other companies don’t have those original research and development costs, the generic version usually
costs a lot less. And that’s good for consumers.

When are prescriptions filled with generic medications?
A. Nearly 50% of all prescriptions in the U.S. are now filled with generic drugs. Your physician may choose to prescribe a generic for you, or, if he or she recommends a brand-name drug, you—as a savvy healthcare consumer— can ask if a generic is available and if it could be prescribed instead. Now that
you know you’re getting the same quality, safety, and efficacy (meaning it works the same way) as the brand-name equivalent, why pay more? (An added note: As a rule, pharmacists usually will substitute a generic for a brand-name drug, unless otherwise directed by the physician or prohibited by applicable law.)

As a health plan member, does using generic
medications really save me money?
A. Most health plans and employers require member copayments for medications. The copayment amount for generic drugs generally is less than for brand-name equivalents.With generic prices on average 20% to 50% less than their brand-name drug counterparts, your choice of generic drugs can help keep your insurance premiums low and benefits high.

Answer 3

Generic medications and brand name drugs are considered to be therapeutically equivalent - menaing that they are the same dosage form, have the same active ingredient in it and have passed rigorous in vivo (in the body) tests to assure that they act the same way in the body. However, that being said, some medications, specifically ones where mental issues come into play, like anti-scizophrenic drugs, the patient can effect the outcome. There are many instances of patients such as these decompensating or otherwise suffering adverse effects when switching from the brand to generic or vice versa. It doesn't mean that one is less effective, it just means that the patient perceives it to be different. There have been studies that when the brand and generic look exactly the same, this doesn't happen.

The other time that brand and generic are not "identical" is in drugs that have a narrow therapeutic range, or requiring titrating or monitoring to assure that the correct dose is given. An example of this is thyroid medications. Most doctors prefer not to switch their patients, becasue of the increased monitoring. Not to say the brand is better - but just that there might have to be minor tweaks in the dosage.

As for over the counter drugs - any drug that requires FDA approval prior to marketing that is OTC - like Claritin and its generics, require the same rigorous approval process that prescription drugs require. Other OTC medications, like aspirin, are considered "Monograph", which means that they don't need prior approval for selling it - all you need is an approved manufacturing facility. They are required to test to certain standards, but there is no requirement to test in human subjects.

Generic drugs cost less because of the lesser amount of time and money put into development.

Answer 4

For the main effect there probably won't be a difference, however the excipients (inactive ingredients) used are sometimes different. So while it should work the same way, you may have a sensitivity or allergy to one of the excipients. Best thing to do is check with your doctor (I am NOT one).

As to why it is cheaper to buy a generic - it is because you aren't paying for the name. An expensive pair of jeans is usually made in exactly the same way and sometimes in the same factory as a 'noname' brand. People will pay more for something for a variety of reasons; they may not be sure if it is the same, they may want the 'status' of having pointlessly overpaid for something, they may cling to the belief that if it is more expensive that it must therefore be better.

In terms of medicine, generics are cheaper mostly because the generic suppliers did not have to pay R&D costs, which can be amazingly high.

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generic_drugs

Answer 5

Short answer, YES. The manufacturing processes, binding agents and coatings tend to be different. These can affect absorption rates and other functions of the medication. However most of the cost difference comes from the generic manufactures lack of involvement in the research and development of the product. By the time a generic drug is sold all the research and clinical work has been completed. That is what cost the most money and bears the most risk. Think back to Vioxx.

Answer 6

After a drug has been on the market for 17 years and the FDA has done it's long-term studies on it, it then is approved for public consumption in generic form. There's no difference, although I have worked with some doctors that didn't like to prescribe generics for only a certain few drugs, but this was the exception. Generics are given whenever possible in hospitals and institutions, so I look at it this way...it's good enough for me, too.

Answer 7

Yes....the price. Unless you are getting your drugs from an unregulated country like Mexico, there is not a difference in the medication, you are just paying for the name and the advertisement that goes behind it. All drugs in the U.S. are regulated by the FDA and they make sure what goes into them is supposed to go into them. The large companies spend millions and billions of dollars on advertisement, so they charge more for the drugs that they sell, thus you are paying for the name. Also a lot of the big companies are the ones who pay for the research on the drugs so they have to pay the costs for all of those tests. Once the patent comes off they can no longer keep the formula from the other companies who did not have to pay for the research, who can make and sell it cheaper because they are not trying to catch up on the cost of researching it.

Answer 8

generics use fillers and bonding agents in their mixture. With them you can absorb the medication faster or slower than other times. Some of the generic brands are the same as the brand name and some don't work as good. Sometimes the generic will crumple or be easier to break apart because of the filler & boding agents. Consider the costs, brand name can cost $350.00 and the generic $35.00. So if you don't have insurance get the generic. it will save you alot of money and they work about the same really

Answer 9

generic is the medicines scientific name like acetaminophen brand name is the company that produces it like Tylenol, when you buy a generic at the pharmacy, it just means it was produced with out being under a brand name, when you pay a higher price you are simply paying for that brand name such as Tylenol. whenever I get a prescription from a Dr I take it to teh pharmacist and ask for generic if they have it, b/c it is cheaper and the same thing. There is no difference other than a company produces it, slaps their name on it and whatever price they want.

Answer 10

Not if they're from a reputable source. The generic brands are exactly the same as the brand names - they're made by the same companies but not marketed with a brand name. A stores own label products will be manufactured for them by one of the well known manufacturers. You can usually tell who makes the generic brands by comparing the ingredients.