Generic Prescription Drugs Can Save You a Boatload of Money

I've talked a lot about using generic/store brand products instead of name brands in order to save a bundle of money. We do this all the time -- especially on over-the-counter medicine. Well, a new study shows that in at least some cases (it focused on heart issues), the same can be said about choosing generic prescription drugs versus their name-brand counter-parts. The summary of the study:

There is no evidence that brand-name drugs given to treat heart and other cardiovascular conditions work any better than their cheaper generic counterparts, U.S. researchers said on Tuesday.

Ok, so what does this mean to your pocketbook?

"Brand-name drugs for cardiovascular disease can be as much as a few dollars a pill, whereas generic drugs might be as little as a few cents a pill," Kesselheim said.

Let's say you take one pill a day. If the name brand is "a few dollars a pill", let's assume it's $3 per pill. And if the generic is "a few cents a pill", let's assume it's $0.10 per pill. So for a one-year period, the choice is to pay $1,095 or $36.50 for something that has the same level of effectiveness. Now, which one do you think is the better deal?

Comments

[Lauren]

I take medication for a condition that is NOT cardiovascular-related, and I am very sensitive to generics. In fact, one medication I have been on for several years finally became available in generic form, and once I switched I immediately had worsening of my symptoms. I figured it was psychosomatic so I gave it three months, but I got worse and worse. Switched back to brand name, got better. It may be true for heart-related medications, but for other conditions people may not react the same to a generic as they do for the brand-name counterpart. Everyone just needs to be aware of their body and notice how things are reacting. It's awesome to pay $4 for a prescription, but do what you need to do to take care of yourself.

[Frank]

Lauren -

Were all of the active ingredients the same?

Frank

[ParatrooperJJ]

Under FDA regulations generices can differ up to 5% in either direction of the dosage strength. This can cause a significant difference in bioavailability of the drug in many people.

[texashaze]

I generally buy generic but the back of my mind wonders ... "what kind of factory in India/China was this made in??? And do I trust them to take care of my body?"

[Tom]

The Wall Street Journal had an interesting article a few months back about generic phsyc drugs. The generics had different inactive ingrediants that caused the absorption rate to change dramatically. Needless to say taking the generic did not act like thename brand.

[John from Concord]

There is an awful lot of anecdotal stuff out there about problems with generics... apparently the FDA informally allows a 20% variation in efficacy, which is fine and good with the insurance companies but not always good for patients. One that has gotten some media attention is a generic form of Wellbutrin, the antidepressant... I expect to see the FDA get a LOT of pushback on other generic meds in coming years.

Short answer: They're great when they work as they're supposed to, but don't assume they will work just like the name-brand med just because your insurance company and the FDA say they will.

[Craig]

I do this all the time. whenever at CVS I always buy store medicine over brand name. It really does save so much money and the ingredients are the same if you ever look. No reason to spend more money just for a name. The quality is identical.

[Michigan Saver]

My Name Brand perscription was $30/mo... I changed to generic and now it's $10/mo...$20 savings each month. I don't notice any difference health wise with the Generic.

Try out those Generics! They say the only ingredient they switch out is the "inactive" ingredient.