Viagra is now available in its generic version in the U.S. Pfizer, the company who owns Viagra, launched a generic version that is half the price.
The little blue pill used to treat erectile dysfunction is now available in a cheaper version. Currently, a brand-name Viagra can cost about $65, and it is believed that by 2018 it’s price can reduce as much as 90 percent, once other generic versions of the medication hit the market.
“The launch of Teva’s sildenafil tablets brings an affordable generic treatment option to the estimated 18 million men in the U.S. who are diagnosed with erectile dysfunction,” said Brendan O’Grady, Teva Pharmaceuticals executive vice president of North American commercial, which launched a generic version of Viagra on Monday.
More generic versions of Viagra to come next year
Viagra was first approved in 1998, becoming the first drug approved to treat erectile dysfunction. It has made more than $1 billion in sales every year since 1999, helping men who’ve had some difficulties in the bedroom.
Its scientific name is Sildenafil, though everybody knows it more as Viagra – even when there are other competitors in the market to treat impotence such as Cialis Levitra – and it is also used to treat pulmonary arterial hypertension. What these pills do is to relax the muscle cells in the penis to allow a higher blood flow.
Diabetes is the most common cause of erectile dysfunction in the United States. As well, it can also be a sign of heart disease, especially when it comes to young men. Viagra also causes side effects, just like most drugs do. They include heart disease, nausea, lightheadedness and it is possible to have an erection that lasts four hours or more, though it is rare.
Now the little blue pill will be available in the United States for more men at half the price of a regular Viagra. This Monday two generic version of the medication has arrived in drugstores across the country. One of them is made by Teva Pharmaceuticals, and the other by Greenstone, a subsidiary of Pfizer.
Reducing the costs of these drugs is a tremendous benefit for most men in the U.S
Currently, the wholesale cost for a 50-milligram or 100-milligram Viagra is $61.54 a pill, according to Pfizer. Greenstone will sell the new version for between $30 and $35 a pill. However, there are some other factors to consider to know the final cost of the product that the customer ends up paying, for example, the insurance coverage and co-pays.
“Cost has been a tremendous issue for patients. Many patients have been unable to obtain the medication since insurance companies don’t pay for it and out-of-pocket costs are astronomical,” said Dr. Aaron Katz, chairman of urology at NYU Winthrop Hospital in Mineola, N.Y. “The hope is that [the introduction of generics] will reduce the cost, and patients will have greater access to Viagra, which has been an important medication for healthy men with erectile dysfunction.”
Dr. Warren Bromberg – who is the chief of urology at Northern Westchester Hospital in Mount Kisco, N.Y – also said that the cost of these pills had been a real issue. He notes that generic versions are a real benefit for the vast majority of men because erectile dysfunction brand drugs are not generally covered by insurance companies. If they are, then they come with substantial co-pays and restrictions on the number of pills included per month.
Dr. Bromberg said that for older men these drugs could end up costing $50 per pill. Therefore many American men are somehow forced to buy erectile dysfunction drugs on the internet, or they go to Canada to get them.
To make their pills more affordable, Pfizer is also implementing discount programs starting in January 2018. The men who pay cash and possess a valid prescription for the drug are going to receive home delivery (Pfizer Direct) of Viagra pills for half of its list price. This service doesn’t take insurance. The cost of a pill will be between $30 and $34 with this program.
Cash-paying customers will also have the chance of getting an enhanced savings card that lifts the six-pill minimum purchase and allows them to save 50 percent of the retail price. The final price of the Viagra with this program is difficult to tell because the cost of the pill might vary in different pharmacies.
The ones with insurance will also have a program by Pfizer. The customers who have their Viagra prescription will have a $20 out-of-pocket co-pay through the first part of 2018. Pfizer considers that 80 to 85 percent of the pharmacies in the country will take part in this program.
Source: CBS News