인도에는 ‘타미플루(Oseltamivir)’ 복제약을 생산하는 제약회사가 5개나 있음에도 불구하고 로슈사의 타미플루의 판매량이 제네릭 보다 10배 이상 더 많이 판매되었다는 소식입니다.
인도에서 판매된 로슈사의 타미플루가 4,47,340 캡슐이고…Hetero’s Fluvir, Natco’s Natflu, Cipla’s Anti-flu 등의 제네릭 제약회사의 타미플루 복제약 44,725 캡슐 판매되었다고 합니다.
로슈사의 타미플루의 경우 1인분(10캡슐) 판매가격은 950루피(Rs ; 23,760원)이며, Hetero사의 복제약 플루비르는 450루피(11,255원), Cipla사의 복제약 안티플루는 470루피(11,755원), Natco사의 복제약 나트플루는 480루피(12,000원)라고 합니다.
이와 같은 뜻밖의 결과는 대중들에게 로슈사의 ‘타미플루’라는 상품명이 ’오셀타미비르(Oseltamivir)’라는 약품성분과 동일어로 인식되었고, 의사들이 성분명 처방보다는 약품명 처방을 많이 하기 때문이라는 분석이 나오고 있습니다.
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Roche’s Tamiflu sales are 10 times more than generic H1N1 drugs
Soma Das
출처 : Express India - Dec 25 12:42 PM
Posted: Saturday, Dec 26, 2009 at 2330 hrs IST
Updated: Saturday, Dec 26, 2009 at 2330 hrs IST
http://www.financialexpress.com/news/roches-tamiflu-sales-are-10-times-more-than-generic-h1n1-drugs/559200/2
New Delhi: Despite five established domestic drug firms manufacturing and marketing the H1N1 drug, Oseltamivir, at half the cost in the country, it is Swiss drug firm Roche Holding AG, which seems to be having the last laugh. One look at the latest retail sales figures of the drug show that Roche’s brand ‘Tamiflu’ is selling over 10 times more than all the generic drugs put together.
Sample this, the latest internal figures that the government has compiled shows that since September, when the government permitted the retail sale of the H1N1 drug, Roche’s Tamiflu has sold 4,47,340 tablets while all generic drugs that include Hetero’s Fluvir, Natco’s Natflu, Cipla’s Anti-flu have sold around 44,725 tablets combined in the 50-odd shops of national capital territory. This is despite the fact that Roche’s drug is available in only two outlets while the other drugs are being marketed in over 40 outlets. Also, while Tamiflu costs Rs 950 per strip (10 tablets), Hetero’s equivalent, the largest selling generic drug costs Rs 450 (10 tablets). Cipla’s Anti-flu costs Rs 470 per 10 tablets while Natco’s Natflu costs around Rs 480.
Interestingly, Roche is the only player in the H1N1 drug market, which doesn’t manufacture the drug in the country. This is because ‘Tamiflu’ in common parlance has become synonymous with ‘Oseltamivir’, the generic or salt name of the drug and most of the prescriptions which are being written out by doctors for H1N1 infected patients carry the name of ‘Tamiflu’. Even though the Medical Council of India’s Code of Ethics Regulation, 2002, prescribes the use of generic names of a drug in prescription, it is not practiced as a rule among the doctors. The MCI says ‘every physician should, as far as possible, prescribe drugs with generics name (salt name)’.
Not all experts agree. “We haven’t yet reached a stage where we could adopt the practice of writing only salt names on prescriptions. Our chemists often tear apart the strip without checking the print of relevant information on batch number, manufacturers address. If things go wrong catching anonymous manufacturers becomes very difficult,” said C M Gulati, editor, Monthly Index of Medical Specialties.
Gulati added that the media also inadvertently played a significant role in promoting Roche’s brand since the pandemic outbreak. In every public discourse that was held around the flu, the word Tamiflu was repeated many times over, partly because of the ease… of using it over ‘Oseltamivir’ and partly because Indian players hadn’t launched their versions as retail sale was allowed only in September….
