Survey: Americans lack knowledge about generics - Pacific Business News (Honolulu):

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And, while research has shown that generics have saved the health care systemj anestimated $734 billion in the last 10 years, two-thirdse of those surveyed don’t know the true cost differences betweenh generic and brand name drugs, according to the surveu conducted by , a leading pharmacy benefit managemen t organization. “Using generics helps make health care more affordabler withoutcompromising results,” Jacqueline Kosecoff, Prescription Solutionws CEO said in a news release.
“Manu Americans erroneously believe that the most expensivwe drug is always the most effective so by helping tochanges perceptions, we can help people save money and stilkl get the best treatment available.” Thirty-one percent of respondents indicated they knew that a brands name drug cost 50-70 percentf more on average than its generic Seventy-one percent of consumers remain concerned aboutr drug costs with more than one in four (27 having either delayed filling, not filled, or not takenn as directed a prescription drug to save money. Twenty-onew percent of all respondents say they have talkedf to their doctor recently about switching to a lessexpensive drug.
Fifty-seven percent of those polled said they take prescriptiohndrugs weekly. Of those, 83 percenft (or 47 percent of the total sample) take generics. Of thos who do not take genericv drugs on aweekly basis, 58 percentf say it is because there is no generic availablse for the drug they need. Sixty-fourd percent of those who take generics say theid doctor recommended them and 43 percent say their pharmacistfrecommended them. Of thosed who do not take generic drugs on aweeklt basis, 58 percent say they would if their pharmacisr brought a generic to their attention as a less identical substitute; and 52 percent say theitr doctor would have to recommend it.