admin @ Tue, 2005-10-25 11:46
The most dramatic savings potential exists for generic gastrointestinal drugs, which treat problems like acid reflux disease, where costs could fall $5.4 billion nationally. The study found that generic gastrointestinal drugs are only dispensed 31 percent of the time but a generic alternative would be appropriate in 95 percent of cases.
Miller said patients only need newer, stronger branded products like AstraZeneca's PLC Nexium 5 percent of the time. AstraZeneca spokeswoman Cynthia Callaghan said price shouldn't be the deciding factor in choosing a treatment.
"We really intend that patents and doctors work together to determine the best treatment," Callaghan said.
The potential for savings will increase as more than $50 billion worth of branded drugs will lose patent protection in the next five years. Next year, $11 billion in drug sales are expected to lose protection as 15 branded products face generic competition, including Merck & Co.'s cholesterol-lowering drug Zocor. Express Scripts has already said next year it will take Pfizer Inc.'s rival product Lipitor off its preferred list, meaning it will have a higher copayment for consumers, in the hopes of convincing more people to take generic Zocor.
Pfizer has previously said it believes the vast amount of clinical data it has accumulated supporting Lipitor's effectiveness will keep sales strong.
In a statement, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the brand drug industry's trade group, said the report goes beyond the company calling merely for generic substitution.
"Much of the increase in generic drug use advocated by Express Scripts involves switching patients to medicines different from those prescribed by their physicians. They are not generic copies of the prescribed treatments," said Ken Johnson, senior vice president of the trade group. "Patients differ from one another, as do medicines in a therapeutic class. It is important that the patient and his or her physician determine which medicine is right for the patient."
October 25, 2005 7:13 AM Story Options: Print this story Email a friend ©2005 Copyright Calkins Media, Inc. All rights reserved.
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