Why Buying Generic Medicine is Better

Generic drugs are the same as name-brand drugs if not better. A generic drug is almost an exact duplicate of the original brand-name drug. The only difference between the two is the appearance. According to WebMD, US trademark laws prohibit a generic drug from looking like its brand-name counterpart, in spite of this it must replicate the active ingredient. A comparison of the common pain reliever fever reducer Tylenol to its generic counterpart Equate Pain Reliever found in Walmart, illustrates the identical active ingredients. The active ingredient in both Tylenol and Equate Pain Reliever is Acetaminophen. It contains the same dosage, strength, quality and safety. The performance is the same and it is used for the same purposes ("Questions"). Difference in price varies but ranges in about a dollar or more in variation depending on size of bottle.

Most people don't realize that both products are the same. People are often misled into thinking that the name-brand products are the best and only products to use in medicine. They are often confused and entertained by the flashy commercials, popular names and pretty packaging. A reasonable person would come to the conclusion that the name-brand has to have some superiority over the generic hence the higher price. The higher price is the result of the name-brand company's cost incurred during the research and development. A generic drug avoids the cost because it simply follows the already developed blue prints. The aggressive advertising and packaging a name-brand company uses to introduce its product to market also contributes to its higher cost. From the often bought cold medicine, to the prescribed drugs the doctor gives you, a person can save money by buying the no-name counterpart of the most popular medicines.

WebMD goes on to explain that at all retail pharmacies, consumers who use generic drugs save an estimated 8 to 10 billion dollars annually. Nearly half of prescriptions are filled with generic medicine. Hospitals also save even more billions of dollars by using generic drugs in their facilities ("Questions"). Not all name-brnad medicines have a generic counterpart. A conclusion to the comparison reveals that the name-brand and the generic are identical counterparts. The fact remains that we live in a society that teaches us that you get what you pay for. Therefore, there will always be those willing to pay more for that false sense of security.