Generic Prescriptions Branded Prescriptions
According to the prescription tracking company, Walters Kluwer, "We're close to the point, certainly by the end of 2009, where two-out-of-every-three prescriptions filled will be generic." In 2008, 60% of all prescriptions filled were generics.
Several factors come into play:
A) The economy (co-pays are more expensive for branded pharmaceuticals);
B) The rise of $4.00 prescriptions;
C) Societal factors and patient education (patients are more comfortable with generics); and
D) Blockbusters continue to go off-patent and patients continuing with or switching to cheaper drugs.
This trend will continue and even accelerate for the foreseeable future as blockbusters, such as Lipitor and Plavix go off-patent in the next couple of years.
Federal and State governments are gearing up their efforts to further push generic prescriptions on the public with efforts, such as fighting the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approval requirements, academic detailing, and comparative effectiveness.
This trend will continue, and if the government continues to raise the bar for new products in the U.S., new product development will move to emerging markets of China and India and, in the end, U.S. patients will lose out.