Thursday, 28 October 2010 14:25 by
bailey
Where have you been filling out your prescriptions? Are you getting the best deals possible? If you are like two-thirds of Americans, you or someone in your home takes prescription medications regularly. Rx drugs are not inexpensive monthly investments! Many times, a doctor will recommend a drug that is new on the market, which tends to be costlier than those that are already available in stores. Patients that are restricted by a tight budget should ask their doctors for generic Rx drugs in place of the name-brand versions. Generic prescription medications are sold under a different name, but the ingredients and effects are the same as their brand-name counterpart. How can these medicines be sold for less if they are virtually the same drug?
Whether you are discussing American or Canadian prescription drugs, the brand-name version is always more costly than the generic model. The expensive cost of brand-name Rx drugs comes from the need to research, market and perfect the manufacturing of this new drug. The drug is provided with a copyright so the company has exclusive rights to the name and ingredients within the useful medication. This patent runs out after a specified amount of time, usually between 12 and 17 years.
At the point that the brand-name drug’s patent expires, other companies approach the FDA for permission to manufacture a generic version. These are not copyrighted, and creating Rx drugs based on an already-perfected model means they can be manufactured for much less. Also, since more than one company will approach the FDA for rights to create generic Canadian prescriptions, there is more competition, an economic blessing to customers which will keep prices down even further. Since the inexpensive, generic versions of Rx drugs are just as effective as brand-name versions, it is clear that the price of a medication does not necessarily indicate efficacy.
If this is the case, why do so many people continue to pay more for the name-brand version? This is purely psychological, as people become comfortable with what they know works. Everything from the name of the drug to the color and font on the packaging can sell a product to a loyal customer. You may have paused to compare different ingredients in Rx drugs and noticed a different combination of inactive ingredients. These are insignificant unless you have an allergy to one inactive ingredient or another. The generic version of Rx drugs will always utilize the same active ingredients.