High blood pressure treatment just got cheaper
WASHINGTON — For many of the one-in-three American adults who have high blood pressure, a cheaper alternative to brand-name medications is about to become available.
Losartin, the angiotensin II receptor blocker marketed under the brand names Cozaar and Hyzaar (the latter of which combines losartin with the diuretic hydrochlorothiazide) for more than a decade, will become available in generic formulations, following an FDA decision announced this week.
Four drug makers have won the FDA's blessing to make and market the hypertension drugs in generic forms. Wasting no time, the first company to receive broad FDA approval to market the generic drug, Teva, announced Thursday the launch of its losartin potassium-film-coated tablets in 25-milligram, 50-milligram and 100-milligram strengths.
If you're a patient being treated with other brand-name angiotension receptor blockers for hypertension — Atacand, Avapro and Diovan — you may have to wait for less expensive drugs. Atacand won't be available in generic form before 2011 at the earliest, and Avapro and Diovan are not expected to reach the market in generic form before 2012.
The FDA's Office of Generic Drugs states flatly that generic drugs are the same as the brand-name first-to-market drugs they copy — same active ingredient, same means of action, same safety and effectiveness profile — they're just much cheaper. But the formulations in which those active ingredients are packaged do change when th
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