cholesterol med lipitor goes generic today

[alocispepraluger102]

i'm an overjoyed(at the greatly reduced prices) lipitor user. are you?

will you switch to a generic formulation?

eventually, pfizer wants to make lipitor over-the-counter.

forbes lipitor article

Edited December 1, 2011 by alocispepraluger102

[Chuck Nessa]

Pfizer want it over-the-counter if they can get $20 a pill.

[alocispepraluger102]

Pfizer want it over-the-counter if they can get $20 a pill.

pfizer has raked in the big fees from the generic makers for rights, and now they are going to sell it over the counter.

the profits on lipitor are ridiculous.

[JETman]

From experience, I know that the pharmaceutical industry is HIGHLY corrupt. What else is new?

[alocispepraluger102]

From experience, I know that the pharmaceutical industry is HIGHLY corrupt. What else is new?

that's known as the free enterprise system

[JETman]

FWIW, it's not likely that the FDA would approve a drug like Lipitor for over-the-counter sale since patients who take it are strongly advised to have their liver function tested quarterly. In other words: no prescribing doctors = no guarantee that this will happen.

[alocispepraluger102]

FWIW, it's not likely that the FDA would approve a drug like Lipitor for over-the-counter sale since patients who take it are strongly advised to have their liver function tested quarterly. In other words: no prescribing doctors = no guarantee that this will happen.

perhaps this could be justified by slightly reducing tablet strength.

[JETman]

FWIW, it's not likely that the FDA would approve a drug like Lipitor for over-the-counter sale since patients who take it are strongly advised to have their liver function tested quarterly. In other words: no prescribing doctors = no guarantee that this will happen.

perhaps this could be justified by slightly reducing tablet strength.

No. More likely by a payoff to the FDA.

[alocispepraluger102]

FWIW, it's not likely that the FDA would approve a drug like Lipitor for over-the-counter sale since patients who take it are strongly advised to have their liver function tested quarterly. In other words: no prescribing doctors = no guarantee that this will happen.

perhaps this could be justified by slightly reducing tablet strength.

No. More likely by a payoff to the FDA.

BINGO!!!!!

[Kevin Bresnahan]

When you get Lipitor (or any statin for that matter), the material that comes with the prescription has all the warnings and one of the possible side effects could result in death. I highly doubt any company would go over the counter with that potential lawsuit hanging over their head.

[Chuck Nessa]

When you get Lipitor (or any statin for that matter), the material that comes with the prescription has all the warnings and one of the possible side effects could result in death. I highly doubt any company would go over the counter with that potential lawsuit hanging over their head.

Aspirin. Tylenol.

[Clunky]

I can't see any statin being suitable for OTC use. Most OTC medicines are for self limiting short term illnesses not chronic disease management. The SPC for lipitor suggests periodic checking of liver function tests. I've never seen 3 monthly testing followed unless of course there have been specific concerns re LFTs. Statins do work and appear to well tolerated

[alocispepraluger102]

link

[Quincy]

When you get Lipitor (or any statin for that matter), the material that comes with the prescription has all the warnings and one of the possible side effects could result in death. I highly doubt any company would go over the counter with that potential lawsuit hanging over their head.

Aspirin. Tylenol.

No kidding about Tylenol. I've bumped into a "regional Acetaminophen overdose by geography" report that was gated and didn't take time to see if my library has it, but I've long been curious if the Pacific NW has more overdoses due to the medication's warning being described in number of drinks. There's a huge difference between 3 12 oz. bottles of Budweiser and 3 pints of hopped up higher alcohol microbrew.

Edited December 1, 2011 by Quincy

[JETman]

link

Again, this will NOT happen. The FDA will not go for it, and the outcry in the healthcare community alone would be enough to squash it.

My girlfriend's a pharmacist and is paid to know these things.

[alocispepraluger102]

i find it interesting that pfizer's dormant stock recently reached 3.5 year highs coincident with their 17 year cashcow going generic.

i smell a rat.

[Kevin Bresnahan]

You know the FDA will never allow Lipitor to go over the counter. Just look what they did with red yeast rice. It used to be you could buy it in health food stores and take it to lower your cholesterol because it contained a kind of natural statin. The FDA made all manufacturers take that out! Anyone who's buying red yeast rice in a pill form as a natural method to lower their cholesterol is wasting some serious money. It won't do any good.

From Wiki:

"Regulatory restrictions

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) position is that red yeast rice products that contain monacolin K, i.e., lovastatin, are identical to a drug and, thus, subject to regulation as a drug. In 1998, the FDA initiated action to ban a product (Cholestin) containing red yeast rice extract. The U.S. district court in Utah allowed the product to be sold without restriction. This decision was reversed on appeal to the U.S. District Court. (Moore, 2001) (see Further Reading: PDRhealth). Shortly thereafter, the FDA sent Warning Letters to companies selling red yeast rice. The product disappeared from the market for a few years.

In 2003, red yeast rice products began to reappear in the U.S. market. As of 2010, there are at least 30 brands available. Many of these avoid the FDA restriction by not having any appreciable monacolin content. Their labels and websites say no more than "fermented according to traditional Asian methods" or "similar to that used in culinary applications." The labeling on these products often says nothing about cholesterol. If they do not contain lovastatin, do not claim to contain lovastatin, and do not make a claim to lower cholesterol, they are not subject to FDA action. Two reviews confirm that the monacolin content of red yeast rice dietary supplements can vary over a wide range, with some containing negligible monacolins.[6][7] In 2007, the FDA sent Warning Letters to two dietary supplement companies. One was making a monacolin content claim about its RYR product and the other was not, but the FDA noted that both products contained monacolins. Both products were withdrawn.[8][9] The FDA also issued a warning press release (see Further Reading; FDA 2007). The crux of the release was that consumers should "…not buy or eat red yeast rice products…may contain an unauthorized drug that could be harmful to health." The rationale for "…harmful to health…" was that consumers might not understand that the dangers of monacolin-containing red yeast rice might be the same as those of prescription statin drugs".

[GregK]

From experience, I know that the pharmaceutical industry is HIGHLY corrupt. What else is new?

What experience?

[JETman]

From experience, I know that the pharmaceutical industry is HIGHLY corrupt. What else is new?

What experience?

As I stated previously, my girlfriend is a pharmacist, and I have friends who work the wholesale side.

[AllenLowe]

I just want my hair back.

[Big Wheel]

When you get Lipitor (or any statin for that matter), the material that comes with the prescription has all the warnings and one of the possible side effects could result in death. I highly doubt any company would go over the counter with that potential lawsuit hanging over their head.

Aspirin. Tylenol.

No kidding about Tylenol. I've bumped into a "regional Acetaminophen overdose by geography" report that was gated and didn't take time to see if my library has it, but I've long been curious if the Pacific NW has more overdoses due to the medication's warning being described in number of drinks. There's a huge difference between 3 12 oz. bottles of Budweiser and 3 pints of hopped up higher alcohol microbrew.

One night when I had a miserable sinus ailment of some sort and couldn't fall asleep, I had the brilliant idea of popping a couple of Tylenol and chasing it down with the only booze I could find in the house, a small shot of Southern Comfort.

I woke up the next day with unbelievable pain in the back of my torso. It seriously felt like someone had kicked me directly in the liver. Maybe the two weren't connected, but I'm never, ever trying that again.

[AllenLowe]

did you wake up at home or in a cell?

[GregK]

From experience, I know that the pharmaceutical industry is HIGHLY corrupt. What else is new?

What experience?

As I stated previously, my girlfriend is a pharmacist, and I have friends who work the wholesale side.

Well, that's a pretty broad statement to make when one's "experience" is barely touching the industry, which is made up of big business and top-level science. As a scientist working on the R&D side, the corruption is firmly on the business end. Please, make a distinction next time.

[alocispepraluger102]

From experience, I know that the pharmaceutical industry is HIGHLY corrupt. What else is new?

What experience?

As I stated previously, my girlfriend is a pharmacist, and I have friends who work the wholesale side.

Well, that's a pretty broad statement to make when one's "experience" is barely touching the industry, which is made up of big business and top-level science. As a scientist working on the R&D side, the corruption is firmly on the business end. Please, make a distinction next time.

government mandates, legal liability contingencies, and a generally ignorant medical press must make the r&d life a troubled one indeed. thanks to you and your associates.

i recently heard that the big makers are spending less effort and money developing formulations which will become generic and are instead concentrating on the expensive exotic facet of the business.

Edited December 3, 2011 by alocispepraluger102

[Jim Alfredson]

i'm an overjoyed(at the greatly reduced prices) lipitor user. are you?

I'd be more overjoyed if our national food system wasn't wholly corrupt and the main contributing factor for the heart disease, diabetes, cancer, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol issues that plague our population. Then we wouldn't need overpriced drugs in the first place!