Wave of lower-cost versions of top brand-names
will soon hit pharmaceutical market.
Consumers and health plans could save more than $26.4 billion over
the next five years by using cheaper generic versions of 14 brand-name
drugs that are scheduled to lose their patent protection by 2009,
according to a recent study.
Copycat versions of those drugs, which older People
commonly use, could help Medicare shave $23.3 billion off its prescription-drug
spending over the same period, the study by the Pharmaceutical Care
Management Association indicates.
The association’s study looked at 14 of the
top 100 drugs that older consumers use, including the cholesterol
medications Zocor and Pravachol,
heart disease medications Norvasc and Lotrel, mental health drugs
Zoloft and Risperdal, the allergy medication Zyrtec
and the hypertension drug Coreg. Seniors account for about 47
percent of sales for the drugs in the study.
A recent study by Consumers Union found that Medicare
could save $8.2 billion, or 58 percent, in 2007 just by beneficiaries
using cheaper generic statins to reduce cholesterol. Generic
drugs typically are 60 percent cheaper than the original versions;
the savings can run from 30 percent to 80 percent.
