Big Pharma is aggressively working to keep blockbuster drugs widely used by the elderly from being sold in cheaper generic versions when their patents expire, the organization that represents pharmacy benefit managers said Tuesday.
With an unprecedented number of top-selling drugs scheduled to go off patent in the next five years, the organization said, branded drug companies are throwing up roadblocks to potential savings of $23 billion over the next five years to both seniors and the Medicare system.
"There's an agenda to prevent generics from getting to the market as soon as they could," said Mark Merritt, president of the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association, which conducted the study. The association represents companies that administer prescription drug plans for employers and government programs.
"If they succeed," Merritt said, brand-name drug companies "could reduce the savings significantly."
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