Posted by ed_uk2010 on March 28, 2010, at 14:49:34
In reply to Re: old Valium..generic loses potency more than brand?, posted by sukarno on March 28, 2010, at 9:52:51
Like most mass produced drugs, diazepam only costs a few pence/cents/whatever to manufacture. The branded drug is extremely cheap to make, not just the generic. This also applies to most modern psych drugs which are manufactured in huge quantites and then sold at high prices. It's all about economies of scale. Branded drugs are normally sold with vastly greater mark-ups than generics. This is initially vital to cover the cost of research but the continued high prices of certain branded drugs after many years on the market is a bit of a farce.
>Perhaps it is a matter of excipients or bioavailability?
The excipients can affect the chemical stability of the tablet. In some cases, a brand may have a longer expiry date than the generic or vice versa.
poster:ed_uk2010
thread:941165
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20100328/msgs/941221.html