Americans who take Celebrex to fight arthritis may be pleased to know that a generic version has been approved by the FDA. The New York Times’ coverage reports, in a somewhat predictive fashion, that generic drugs “can cost 30 to 80 percent less than the branded products.” While that’s true, don’t expect generic Celebrex to be so cheap. What’s most likely is that its price will initially be around 80%, and then creep downwards.
Millions of Americans have seen this pricing trend over the past few years, as many popular medications have recently gone generic. A patent’s expiry does not necessarily mean cheaper drugs, at least immediately. That’s because the FDA grants marketing exclusivity for a generic to a single drug company for six months, so only two drug companies – the brand name manufacturer and the first generic manufacturer – are competing. As more drug companies enter the market the price will eventually cost a fraction of the brand name counterpart. But that first generic to market will usually only be about 20% cheaper than the brand.
When atorvastatin (generic Lipitor) first came out you could actually save a lot of money by purchasing the brand from an international online pharmacy instead of the generic from a U.S. pharmacy. Now, with many companies manufacturing atorvastatin, generic Lipitor in the U.S. can be found for about $15 per month if you use a discount card. International online pharmacies that once had a leg up on U.S. pharmacies lose big once competition drives U.S. generic drug prices down.
A perfect example is the popular antidepressant Cymbalta. Currently, the cash price of a 90 day supply of duloxetine (generic Cymbalta, 60 mg) is around $250 – and that’s after using a discount card at the pharmacy. A 90 day supply of brand name Cymbalta is only $90 when ordered from an international online pharmacy – a 64% discount!
We expect this pricing pattern for Abilify, Gleevec, Crestor, and many other drugs coming off patent down the pipeline. In the initial phase of a new generic’s release, the brand version from an international online pharmacy will probably be much cheaper, but eventually your neighborhood pharmacy will be your best bet. So if you take Celebrex expect to celebrate a low cost U.S. generic in early 2015!
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CELEBREX: I am a retired Texas public school teacher and have their plan as my secondary insurance — Medicare is my primary. The retired teacher insurance has a drug plan with it. Today, I received a letter from them that as of September 1, 2015, they WILL NO LONGER COVER Celecoxib capsules. Most people know this drug as CELEBREX. They suggest “preferred alternatives”: etodolac; ibuprofen; meloxicam; nabumetone, or diclofenac sodium – misoprostol.
I’m guessing that other insurance companies MAY also no longer provide Celecoxib. If readers have stock in the company that makes Celecoxib, they may want to consider if they want to keep that stock.
Generic Celebrex (blue in color) made by Mylan pharmaceuticals simply does not work. I have taken Brand Celebrex for 5 years for arthritis and a heart arrythmia, and it allowed me to keep my heart rate down and experience NO symptoms of arthritis at the same time. It cost $1200 for 3 month supply from Express Scripts which is quite outragious for such a medication. After taking the generic by Mylan my arrythmia is out of control and my arthritis is severe, requiring pain medicine. The cost of the generic was $930 for 3 month supply from the same pharmacy my insurance, BC/BS requires-Express Scripts. The price and ineffective generic is outrageous. It is not the first generic (other drugs) that I have had no clinical improvement from.