Rapid responses are electronic comments to the editor. They enable our users
to debate issues raised in articles published on bmj.com. A rapid response
is first posted online. If you need the URL (web address) of an individual
response, simply click on the response headline and copy the URL from the
browser window. A proportion of responses will, after editing, be published
online and in the print journal as letters, which are indexed in PubMed.
Rapid responses are not indexed in PubMed and they are not journal articles.
The BMJ reserves the right to remove responses which are being
wilfully misrepresented as published articles or when it is brought to our
attention that a response spreads misinformation.
From March 2022, the word limit for rapid responses will be 600 words not
including references and author details. We will no longer post responses
that exceed this limit.
The word limit for letters selected from posted responses remains 300 words.
Generic prescribing is now old hat with the re-emergence of proprietary prescribing as in certain cases is making further savings on the drug cost. The hidden cost, however, is the time to change the drugs over and the inevitable need to repeat this exercise at a not to distant point in the future as prices continue their merry-go-round. These new proprietary drugs have unfamiliar names adding confusion to both doctor and patient with the increased risk of prescribing mistakes.
There is only one easy solution and that is to prescribe every drug generically and put the onus on the chemist to dispense the cheapest available whether generic or proprietary and with the generic name clearly written on the dosing label. I am sure there are many hurdles in the way and there may be unintended consequences but I think the cost saving and clarity this would bring would be worth the effort.
Generic drugs and proprietary drugs do not differ in active ingredients. Cost of generic drugs is lower than that of proprietary drugs. However patients can sometimes be allergic to non active ingredients such as lactose, gluten and sulfites. In these cases proprietary drugs may be beneficial. Since generic drugs have same active ingredients and are also economical, General practitioners should be increasingly encouraged to prescribe them. However for drugs with narrow therapeutic range such as digoxin, warfarin and cyclosporine it would be prudent to prescribe proprietary drugs.
Competing interests:
No competing interests
31 October 2015
Vagish Kumar L Shanbhag
Reader
Department of Oral medicine and radiology, Yenepoya Dental College and Hospital*, Yenepoya Research Centre*, Yenepoya University
Re: The rise and rise of generic prescribing
Generic prescribing is now old hat with the re-emergence of proprietary prescribing as in certain cases is making further savings on the drug cost. The hidden cost, however, is the time to change the drugs over and the inevitable need to repeat this exercise at a not to distant point in the future as prices continue their merry-go-round. These new proprietary drugs have unfamiliar names adding confusion to both doctor and patient with the increased risk of prescribing mistakes.
There is only one easy solution and that is to prescribe every drug generically and put the onus on the chemist to dispense the cheapest available whether generic or proprietary and with the generic name clearly written on the dosing label. I am sure there are many hurdles in the way and there may be unintended consequences but I think the cost saving and clarity this would bring would be worth the effort.
Competing interests: No competing interests