4 ms·

> I've requested my pharmacies to not give me any drugs manufactured in India if possible. Are the brand-names manufactured to a higher spec? Even though you

> I've requested my pharmacies to not give me any drugs manufactured in India if possible. Are the brand-names manufactured to a higher spec? Even though you are right - everyone should demand safe generics, because there is no healthcare in any country without them - your words will get lost in the mire of the mind of the libertarian Hacker News 22 year old, who takes no non-stimulant medicines, telling you nobody is forcing you to do this or that, that you should just die.

eitally 2y ago
Supposedly no, but in reality what happens is that when a drug is approved, lots of documentation about that drug + formulation is already published as a result of the R&D processes along with agency oversight in various countries. When a brand name drug goes off patent, everybody (including competitors and generics manufacturers) already has a pretty good idea of both 1) the commercial market for generics, and 2) the components of the drug. What isn't shared are trade secrets disclosing manufacturing processes, as well as the inactive ingredients+formulation of the drug. Competitors & generics OEMs are left to guess and use best judgment when they create competitors to the original, and sometimes they make bad decisions. Actual manufacturing quality should be equally high, but the resulting drug may not end up being exactly the same as the branded version, even if the differences have nothing to do with the active ingredient.
- mezzie2 2y ago
  There's also a certain amount of tolerated variance in generic drug manufacture. Sometimes this isn't a big deal, but other times it can be a problem. For example, if my generic tizanidine (muscle relaxant) is 10-20% less or more effective, it's not really a big deal: I get a little sleepy or need to take an extra pill. When I was on duloxetine for nerve pain, though, I could feel the swings/differences in generics and it was a major problem.
nickff 2y ago
I suspect most libertarians think the biggest problem here (and in many other areas) is that the government is providing a guarantee of safety, but not actually taking the steps which are required to ensure safety (because it'd be extremely difficult).
- iluvcommunism 2y ago
  [flagged]
weaksauce 2y ago
yes. i’ve seen the sausage being made. the quality of the factories making the drugs varies wildly. and the factories where the brand names make them are generally much higher quality in all respects. edit not to mention the processes can be wildly different too as those are not part of the initial disclosure to get patent protections.
- refurb 2y ago
  I've seen the sausage being made and actually made it myself. In every example I've come across, branded medicines (at least for the big companies) are made in the manufacturers own factories. Pfizer, Novartis, Merck, etc all have their own factories in Europe and North America.

eitally 2y ago

Supposedly no, but in reality what happens is that when a drug is approved, lots of documentation about that drug + formulation is already published as a result of the R&D processes along with agency oversight in various countries. When a brand name drug goes off patent, everybody (including competitors and generics manufacturers) already has a pretty good idea of both 1) the commercial market for generics, and 2) the components of the drug. What isn't shared are trade secrets disclosing manufacturing processes, as well as the inactive ingredients+formulation of the drug. Competitors & generics OEMs are left to guess and use best judgment when they create competitors to the original, and sometimes they make bad decisions. Actual manufacturing quality should be equally high, but the resulting drug may not end up being exactly the same as the branded version, even if the differences have nothing to do with the active ingredient.

mezzie2 2y ago
There's also a certain amount of tolerated variance in generic drug manufacture. Sometimes this isn't a big deal, but other times it can be a problem. For example, if my generic tizanidine (muscle relaxant) is 10-20% less or more effective, it's not really a big deal: I get a little sleepy or need to take an extra pill. When I was on duloxetine for nerve pain, though, I could feel the swings/differences in generics and it was a major problem.

nickff 2y ago

I suspect most libertarians think the biggest problem here (and in many other areas) is that the government is providing a guarantee of safety, but not actually taking the steps which are required to ensure safety (because it'd be extremely difficult).

iluvcommunism 2y ago
[flagged]

weaksauce 2y ago

yes. i’ve seen the sausage being made. the quality of the factories making the drugs varies wildly. and the factories where the brand names make them are generally much higher quality in all respects. edit not to mention the processes can be wildly different too as those are not part of the initial disclosure to get patent protections.

refurb 2y ago
I've seen the sausage being made and actually made it myself. In every example I've come across, branded medicines (at least for the big companies) are made in the manufacturers own factories. Pfizer, Novartis, Merck, etc all have their own factories in Europe and North America.