The Wall Street Journal |
Health Blog
By Katherine Hobson
A lot of eyes in the pharma
world are focused on how the introduction of a generic version of Lipitor
will affect the market for the cholesterol-fighting drug.
Last week, for example,
researchers published
an analysis in the New England Journal of
Medicine that found cost savings from switches to the generic version of
atorvastatin could reach $4.5 billion annually by 2014, with the generic
grabbing 44% of the entire statin market three years after going on sale.
Today, a report out from J.P.
Morgan — citing data from IMS Health — says that generic versions of Lipitor
from Watson Pharmaceuticals and Ranbaxy Laboratories snagged about 14.6% of
prescription volume for atorvastatin-containing drugs during the first few days
they were on sale, Dow Jones Newswires
reports.
Generics started hitting the
market on Nov. 30, and these data cover the week ended Dec. 2. Most of the
prescriptions were for Watson’s authorized generic version, which is being supplied
by Pfizer, DJN says. It’s been hard to project what
kind of market toehold generic Lipitor will get, especially during the first
six months of sales. Pfizer has
offered discounts to consumers and forged deals
with pharmacy-benefit managers in order to retain revenue from the branded
drug.
The JPM analyst says he
expects generic versions of atorvastatin to capture about 60% share of the
drug’s sales during the six months after they were introduced.
Φαρμακευτικο Μαρκετινγκ: Θεωρια, Πρακτικη, Δεοντολογια
The ultimate guide for Pharma Marketing
Champions
Ζητήστε
το στα κεντρικά βιβλιοπωλεία ή δώστε την παραγγελία σας τώρα…