Over the past few years, the Indian government has been encouraging patients to opt for generic medicine instead of branded ones. In fact, the government has also mandated doctors to prescribe generic drugs, and more recently, India was back in the news for supplying a bulk order of popular generic drug hydroxychloroquine (HCQ), the anti-malarial drug, which was also used to combat the novel Coronavirus, which brought the entire global economy to a near stand-still earlier this year.
Before supplying HCQ to the United States, India had earlier done the same to African and Latin American countries, albeit those were on humanitarian grounds. Let’s know more about What is generic medicine, But before we talk more about generic drugs and what people think about generic medicines, we first have to understand more about generic drugs.
What is a generic medicine?
According to the World Health Organization, a generic drug is “produced without a license from the innovator company when the patent or other market exclusivity rights on the innovator product have expired”. A generic drug or medicine is a medication that has an identical chemical composition as that of an existing and approved brand-name drug. Generic drugs have the same dosage form, quality, strength, safety, and performance characteristics, among other parameters, as brand-name drugs.
Generic medicines are also 30-80 percent cheaper than the brand-name medicines, and are equally effective as the branded ones. India has one of the highest per capita out-of-pocket expenditures in the world, and as such, generic drugs help the country cut down on healthcare expenditures.
Furthermore, India currently dominates the generic drugs market and exported nearly 20 percent of the global market in 2017-18. The country’s ability to produce affordable medicines, which cost just a fraction of the original, brand-name equivalents has led to the country being christened as the “pharmacy of the world”.
Why are generic drugs so cheap?
The reason can be understood from WHO’s definition of generic drugs. When a pharma company develops a new drug, it usually receives a patent for two decades, during which time other pharma companies cannot sell that drug without their permission. Only after the patent expires can other companies sell the compound as a generic medicine, and considering the fact that Indian companies that offer generic medicines do not invest in research and development, they can offer generic drugs at much lower prices, while still making a substantial profit.
What do Indian people think about generic drugs?
Over the past few years, the perception surrounding generic drugs has seen a significant shift in the eyes of the Indian consumers. While the term ‘generic drug’ was once considered to be a less potent and less efficient alternative to brand-name drugs, today, most of us prefer purchasing generic drugs over branded medicines. The government’s push to make generic drugs popular has been one of the biggest reasons for this change in consumer stance, along with their low costs and easy accessibility.
Affordability and accessibility are two of the most important and crucial aspects in the healthcare industry. This is yet another reason why generic medicines have gained popularity over the past few years.
Talking about affordability and accessibility, tech experts have been making massive strides to revolutionize the healthcare industry, and streamline healthcare services through digital healthcare, which promises to improve the diagnosis and treatment of illness and diseases, along with improving the physical and mental health of the patients.
By making generic drugs more affordable and readily available, companies also ensure that patients that require their medication for chronic illnesses and other diseases can get them without any hassles. Then there are health cards such as the Bajaj Finserv Digital Health EMI Network Card, which make it easier for patients to avail treatment without worrying about the costs.
The Health Card by Bajaj Finserv comes with a pre-approved limit of up to Rs. 4 lakh, and you can use the card to convert the cost of the hospital, pharmacy and diagnostic bills into easy EMIs, which can be repaid in flexible tenors up to 24 months.
