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How Consumer Advocacy Can Encourage More Generics?

Consumer Education
The more consumers and health care providers are aware of the tremendous benefits of generic drugs, the more money individual consumers, insurers, and government programs can save. If the use of generics by only 1 percent, it would generate savings of $4 billion! Generics today account for 69 percent of all prescriptions. The potential for more savings is clear.

Some insurance companies and states—Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Florida, for example—have taken steps to educate doctors and patients about the benefits and lower cost of generics. They encourage doctors to help patients with diet and lifestyle changes as an alternative to costly drugs.

GPhA has developed a consumer education campaign about generics. It emphasizes that generics are the same medicine, provide the same results, but at lower cost than brand-name drugs.

Consumers can read these materials online or can suggest that their physician, pharmacist, senior center, or other organization distribute them to help other people cut their health care costs, too.

Eliminate Market Barriers
The Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval process is lengthy and complicated. And that's okay. It is absolutely necessary to prove that generic drugs are safe and effective.

What is NOT okay is when manufacturers of brand-name drugs try to stall this process, so they can maintain their monopoly on a particular drug. They do this by sending the FDA numerous questionable or frivolous patents claims. This slows the availability of low-cost generics. Just as bad, it diverts companies’ attention from developing new drugs. Both of these problems are bad for consumers.

Consumers should be aware of such needless market barriers, and let their members of Congress know how important it is that they have timely access to affordable medications.

Make Biogenerics Available
FDA does not yet have a method for approving lower-cost generic and “follow-on” versions of biotech drugs. These drugs are made not with chemicals, but with living proteins, enzymes, or other material. And they are expensive. They can cost patients and their insurers—especially patients with a rare disorder—up to $100,000 a year. Millions of Americans use these drugs, including people with diabetes, cancer, and heart disease. Many patients find it difficult or impossible to maintain their treatment and make ends meet.

Consumers who use these drugs can tell their members of Congress how important it is to them that FDA promptly issue guidelines for approving generic versions of biotech drugs.

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About Generics: Same Medicine. Same Results. Lower Cost.
Information from the Generic Pharmaceutical Association’s consumer education campaign
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About Biogenerics
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About Patent Reform
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