by Marion Garcia

Created on: December 09, 2009

Are Generics as good as Brand Name drugs?

Prescription drugs are a necessity for the well being of our health. They can become quite costly. To cut the cost of prescriptions it may be necessary to purchase a less expensive generic drug.

With the steady increase in the high cost of prescription drugs, the question will inevitably arise as to whether a generic is as good as its brand name bio-equivalent. Will a cheaper generic drug work as well as the brand name?

So, what exactly is the differences in a generic drug and a brand name drug? According to the FDA (Federal Drug Administration), cost is the only difference.

By, the FDA standards, a generic drug must have the equivalent active ingredient as the brand name drug. This means that whatever major ingredient causes a drug to be effective, must also be in the bio-equivalent (generic) drug. According to the FDA, testing must show that there is no more than a 20% difference in the generic and its bio-equivalent.

A brand name drug cost more, mainly, because the company that has produced it, must earn enough to pay for the cost of the research, development, clinical trials, promotion, and marketing in producing that drug. Once patented the pharmaceutical companies, are given a time limit to recoup the costs, usually around 17 years. During this time, another company cannot create a duplicate of that particular drug.

At a time when the patent is about to expire, some Pharmaceutical companies will either produce a generic form of this medicine or, create a new medicine that is similar, or close to it. Some will create a drug with a different name that will have the same therapeutic value. By doing so, the company will not to lose money. When the original drug is allowed to be duplicated, they will now have another major brand on the market earning higher prices and earning from the generic brand also.

It is estimated that about 50% of generic medicines are produced by the company that produced the original brand name drug. The main active ingredients must be the same, but the inactive ingredients may be different.

Because a brand name drug has been patented, a generic drug cannot have the same look or color of the brand name. This is basically where the differences occur. Because a generic cannot look like its bio-equivalent, different color dyes, coatings, and fillers are substituted. These small differences are what can cause a generic to be different.

One must keep in mind that a brand name is sold on the market

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