Generic versus brand name drugs
Name brand medication or generic brand? This is a question that we may find ourselves asking from time to time. Which is cheaper? Which is more effective? Basically, which is better? Well, hopefully, this article will help clarify any bit of confusion and enlighten you as to which would best benefit you. So, you really want to know which is better? How about if I say both are safe and effective? Would you believe me? Well, it’s true. Generic drugs are just as effective and safe as the brand name drugs. According to the FDA, generic drugs cannot be sold as such unless they meet the governmental standards.
What makes a difference is the fact that when major pharmaceutical companies bring a new prescription drug on to the market, they have to pay for its development and for its promotion and whatever else. Next, the company goes about getting a patent for the newly developed drug which then gives them the sole right to develop and produce the medication. However, there comes a point where the patent expires and other, smaller, generic brand manufacturers can produce the drug themselves under a different name and once this happens, this drives the price down for essentially the same product.
What matters here is the fact that the smaller manufacturers don’t need to spend millions of dollars developing and promoting anything, since the pharmaceutical corporations already did that for them. Virtually, the only chemical difference between a generic drug and a brand name drug is its composition of inactive ingredients. Due to trademark laws, the exact recipe of a brand name drug cannot be replicated even once the patent has expired, so the inactive ingredients are altered a bit so as to accommodate. And although the appearance of the generic drug may differ from the original brand name drug, this too does not mean the efficacy has been compromised somehow.
Lastly, it also needs to be noted that there is no noticeable difference in the speed at which the drug works and its potency. Both brand name and generic brand drugs are required to work just as quickly as the other. On a side note, the FDA has figured that almost half of all generic drug productions come from large pharmaceutical companies.
What makes a difference is the fact that when major pharmaceutical companies bring a new prescription drug on to the market, they have to pay for its development and for its promotion and whatever else. Next, the company goes about getting a patent for the newly developed drug which then gives them the sole right to develop and produce the medication. However, there comes a point where the patent expires and other, smaller, generic brand manufacturers can produce the drug themselves under a different name and once this happens, this drives the price down for essentially the same product.
What matters here is the fact that the smaller manufacturers don’t need to spend millions of dollars developing and promoting anything, since the pharmaceutical corporations already did that for them. Virtually, the only chemical difference between a generic drug and a brand name drug is its composition of inactive ingredients. Due to trademark laws, the exact recipe of a brand name drug cannot be replicated even once the patent has expired, so the inactive ingredients are altered a bit so as to accommodate. And although the appearance of the generic drug may differ from the original brand name drug, this too does not mean the efficacy has been compromised somehow.
Lastly, it also needs to be noted that there is no noticeable difference in the speed at which the drug works and its potency. Both brand name and generic brand drugs are required to work just as quickly as the other. On a side note, the FDA has figured that almost half of all generic drug productions come from large pharmaceutical companies.
