Two researchers from Johns Hopkins and one researcher from Integrity Pharmaceutical Advisors evaluated the top 1,000 generics in Colorado’s 2019 payer claims. That year, generics cost payers $7.5 million, but if all generic costs were created equal, that figure would have dropped to $873,711, an 88.3 percent decline, they found.
Among the 1,000 generics, 45 of them “had lower-cost therapeutic alternatives of same clinical value,” according to the study, which was published Nov. 2 in JAMA. Of those 45 drugs, the most expensive generics were 15.6 times more costly than their alternatives.
Since patients require a provider’s note to receive a cheaper generic, the study’s authors concluded that insurers and plan sponsors should adjust their formularies to achieve the projected savings, which was about $6.6 million in 2019.
