THE VALUE OF BRAND-NAME DRUGS
1
THE BRAND-NAME DRUG COSTS THE SAME AS ITS GENERIC DRUG
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Brand-name drugs are at the same price as generic drugs in Spain. The explanation is that, in the NHS, the reference price system equals the price of original and generic presentations.
In our country, more than 82% of the drugs dispensed in pharmacies are at the generic price, so it does not matter from a savings point of view whether the prescription is made by active ingredient or by brand.
2
THE PATIENT CAN ORDER THE BRAND-NAME DRUG
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Patients in Spain have the right to healthcare information, which implies knowing the differences of all kinds that the available options may entail for their treatment. This issue is included in the Patient Autonomy Law. This includes the prescription of a brand-name or generic drug and the right to request such information from the prescriber, who is obliged to provide it.
As co-responsible for his or her treatment, the patient can request that a particular brand-name drug be dispensed, never at a higher price, based on his or her own experience and after comparing its advantages over any other drug with similar therapeutic effects with the healthcare professional.
3
THE PHYSICIAN MAY PRESCRIBE THE BRAND-NAME DRUG
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The physician can prescribe by brand name within the SNS, because, according to the legislation, the prescription of drugs and medical devices will be carried out in the most appropriate way for the benefit of patients, while protecting the sustainability of the system.
The obligatory nature of prescribing by active ingredient in the SNS, which once existed, was eliminated and the physician can now prescribe both by active ingredient and by brand, except in the case of non-substitutable drugs, which must be prescribed obligatorily by brand.
4
THE BRAND NAME DRUG ALLOWS THE PATIENT TO BETTER IDENTIFY HIS TREATMENT
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The brand name of a drug is a substantial aid to the patient, as it is usually much easier to remember and pronounce than the active ingredient, making it easier to identify and facilitating adherence to treatment.
Unlike the brand name, the active ingredient names used by generic drugs are complex and similar for most patients and make them manageable only for healthcare professionals. In the case of combinations of two or three active ingredients, the usefulness of the brand name is even greater.
5
THE BRAND-NAME DRUG FACILITATES TREATMENT COMPLIANCE
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When a prescription is made by active ingredient, the drug packages dispensed may have different appearances, shapes and colors, which adds greater complexity to the continuity of treatment, especially in some patient groups, such as the elderly, polymedicated patients, chronic patients, etc.
The brand-name drug facilitates the recognition of the drug by the patient and allows the establishment of a continuous link with the drug. In addition, the coincidence between what is written on the prescription and the name on the actual container of the drug dispensed reinforces doctor-patient trust and avoids changes in dispensing, because the law establishes that, in general, the prescribed drug must be dispensed in the pharmacy.
6
BRAND-NAME DRUGS FAVOR PHARMACOVIGILANCE
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According to pharmacovigilance regulations, healthcare professionals are obliged to report suspected adverse drug reactions. If the prescription is made by brand name, it facilitates the correct completion of the report, which requires the “trade name” (not the active ingredient), in order to associate the report to a specific drug and to be able to inform, if necessary, the pharmaceutical company.
With generic drugs, it is more difficult for the prescriber to have a record of the package finally dispensed at the pharmacy. In addition, the easily identifiable brand-name drug can encourage patients to report possible adverse reactions, as allowed by the Spanish Medicines Agency through the NotificaRAM tool.
7
THE BRAND-NAME DRUG HELPS TO STABILIZE TREATMENT
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Always taking the same drug in some patient groups is particularly relevant because it helps to maintain treatment stabilization. This is the case, for example, of drugs with a narrow therapeutic range, modified-release dosage forms or patients who are allergic to certain excipients and who do not tolerate certain drug formulations, even if they have the same active ingredient.
Continuity of treatment with the brand-name drug is the most advisable in order to adequately maintain the prescribed medication.
8
BETTING ON BRANDED DRUGS FAVORS INNOVATION
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Innovative pharmaceutical companies provide society with one of the most precious goods that contributes most to the well-being and health of the population: medicines. They are the ones that research, develop, produce and market new drugs that alleviate ailments, improve quality of life and cure diseases.
Asking for or prescribing a brand-name drug, when it has already lost its patent, is a way to favor biomedical innovation, i.e., the development of new treatment options for patients. To which we must add the added value generated by the biopharmaceutical industry in Spain, providing quality employment (more than 51,000 direct jobs), contributing to trade (third export sector with more than 20,000 million a year), productivity (third industrial sector) and R&D&I (second industrial sector that invests the most in R&D in Spain, with almost 1,400 million euros a year).
9
THE BRAND-NAME DRUG RESPONSIBLY MAINTAINS THE FULL RANGE OF PRESENTATIONS
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Experience has shown that some generic drug companies market only the most commercially attractive presentations, discarding the effective marketing of dosages and dosage forms with limited sales volume or with little economic return.
If the original drugs, whose manufacturer markets the full range of presentations (tablets, capsules, sachets, syrups, patches, etc.) are not used, they are significantly weakened and may even disappear, with the consequent impact on certain particularly vulnerable patient groups, such as the elderly and children.
10
BRAND-NAME DRUGS STRENGTHEN THE PRODUCTIVE FABRIC IN SPAIN
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Of the more than one hundred drug production plants in Spain, 70% manufacture brand-name drugs; therefore, these companies play a crucial role in guaranteeing the open strategic autonomy proposed by the Government and within the European Union to strengthen the region’s economic security and global leadership for the next decade.
Likewise, in a global context of increasing supply problems of classic and low-priced drugs, the original drug companies based in our country can play a key role in minimizing these problems, since they have the capacity and experience to guarantee the manufacture of many of these drugs.
