An Unbiased Look at the Differences between Generic Drugs and their Name Brand Counterparts

Understanding the difference between name brand drugs and their generic versions requires analyzing several factors. We must take a look at

• what patents are exactly
• how long they last
• why they are issued

We must also determine

• what the FDA has to say about generic vs. name brand medications
• how they control both versions
• determining how effective and safe generic drugs may be, as compared to their name brand equivalents, is also very important
• Look, feel, taste and price are also determining factors.

So, the key question is: "Are generic drugs as safe, as effective and as well regulated as name brand drugs or are they of inferior quality?" In fact, the answers to these questions are often in favor of generic drugs, without even considering that they may be priced much cheaper and those generic drugs are generally the only versions covered under most insurance policies.

Patents for Brand-Name Drugs

Every time a new drug is created, the drug company applies for a patent to protect their rights to advertise, sell, profit from and recover research and development, manufacturing and marketing costs. Patents stimulate R&D expenditure and, without this protection, most drug companies wouldn't be willing to invest the amount of money involved in the creation of a new drug.

Drug Patents last for 20 Years

Patents guarantee that no other company will be able to copy, imitate or otherwise market or distribute a new drug that was created by the company that holds the patent. Therefore, new drugs are generally only available in brand-name versions. But government regulations stipulate that a company should only be allowed to keep their exclusivity rights for a period of 20 years. This is considered an ample time span for companies to recover the amounts they invested in creating the new drug and to profit from their sales. After the 20 year period expires, any other drug company may copy the drug and produce it in a generic form. Since the companies that produce generic drugs don’t have to spend money on research and development or up front marketing costs, they are able to offer generic versions at substantially cheaper prices.

The Look and Feel of Generic Drugs

Generic drugs contain the exact same active ingredients and chemicals that are present in name brand medications, but usually come in different shapes, forms and colors and have different types of tablet or pill coatings. This is because of government regulations requiring generic drug manufacturers to create drugs in a manner that will not mislead consumers into thinking they are buying the same name brand versions. Generic drugs are usually called by their chemical name and are not permitted to use the brand name anywhere on the packaging.

Safety and Effectiveness Requirements for Generic Drugs

The FDA requires that generic drugs be therapeutically equivalent to name brand medications. That means that their chemical composition must be exactly the same. Generic drugs that are considered to be equivalent receive an "A" rating by the FDA and are listed in a guide that is available in most pharmacies. This guide is updated monthly in order to ensure that new generic drug versions are always included. If the FDA determines that a generic drug chemically identical, it is issued it a "B" rating. It is widely recommended to only buy generic drugs with an "A" rating. If you are purchasing drugs from a pharmacy outside of the United States or if you live abroad, then you need to find out if a drug has been determined to be therapeutically equivalent by a respectable organization such as WHO (World Health Organization).

The Side Effects of Generic Drugs

The FDA requires that all generic drugs meet the exact same requirements for quality, purity, stability, prescription strength, etc. as their name brand equivalents. Therefore, since the active ingredients are identical, the side effects will be exactly the same.
Generic drugs are required to include this information within their labels just as name brand drugs. The FDA also requires that generic drugs be produced in the same dosage amounts as the brand name version.

Price of generics vs. Name brand medications.

Since generic drugs are simply replicas of name brand medications, they are considered to be the exact same drug but for a fraction of the price. Do not let the lower price mislead you to think that generic drugs are lesser quality, less effective, or less appropriate than their name brand counterparts. Large pharmaceutical companies may try to convince consumers that only the name brand version is genuine (even after the patent has expired), but in reality, the difference between generic drugs and brand name drugs is only in the price.