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If you think all drugs from Canada are cheaper
than U.S. drugs, think again. In the United States, generic drugs--roughly
half of all prescriptions--are often cheaper than both Canadian
brand-name drugs and Canadian generic drugs, according to a study
by the Food and Drug Administration.
FDA analysts looked at the seven biggest-selling generic prescription
drugs for chronic conditions that became available as generics
in the United States since 1993:
For six of the seven drugs, the U.S. generics were priced lower
than the brand-name versions in Canada . Five of the seven U.S.
generic drugs were also cheaper than the Canadian generics. Of
the remaining two U.S. generic drugs, one (enalapril)
was unavailable in Canada generically, and its Canadian brand-name
version was more than five times the price of the U.S. generic
equivalent. The other U.S. generic (metformin)
sold for less in Canada both as a generic and as a brand name.
Metformin
did not become available generically in the United States until
January 2002, so U.S. generic prices have likely not fallen to
the level they will eventually reach, say the FDA Office of Planning
economists who did the study.
The FDA study compared the average price of the generic and brand-name
versions of seven drugs sold in the United States and Canada by
calculating the price per milligram of active ingredients in U.S.
dollars. Prices in Canada were converted to prices in U.S. dollars
using a 2002 exchange rate. The prices were the costs to retailers,
and should predict retail prices to the extent that retail markups
are the same in both countries. Pricing information was collected
by the pharmaceutical market research company IMS Health of Plymouth
Meeting, Pa.
Advocates of legalizing imports of drugs from Canada and other
countries have typically cited studies showing that brand-name
drugs are much cheaper abroad than in the United States . These
studies ignore how competition in the U.S. market lowers generic
drug prices so they are lower than drug prices abroad, say FDA
economists. U.S. generics have the same quality, safety, and strength
as brand-name drugs, and they undergo the same rigorous review
by the FDA before they are allowed on the market.
Drug standards and regulations differ from one country to another,
and the FDA is responsible only for drugs that are sold within
the United States . The agency is concerned about the strength,
quality, and purity of medications that have not been approved
for sale in the United States because they may not have been manufactured
under quality assurance procedures designed to make a safe and
effective product.
"The standards for drug review and approval in the U.S.
are the best in the world," says William Hubbard, FDA associate
commissioner for policy and planning, "and the safety of
our drug supply mirrors these high standards." But when U.S.
consumers seek out Canadian suppliers, sources that purport to
be Canadian, or other foreign sources that they believe to be
reliable, they are taking a risk, he says. "While some foreign
drug manufacturers submit their products to FDA for approval,
the imported drugs arriving through the mail, through private
express couriers, or by passengers arriving at ports of entry
are often unapproved drugs that may not be subject to any reliable
regulatory oversight. FDA cannot assure the safety of drugs purchased
from such sources."
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On the web at:
http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2004/404_generic.html
Search for buy US generic drugs
at Prescription Point
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