Generic Viagra is a drug that has the same qualitative and quantitative composition of active substances (active pharmaceutical substances) and the same dosage form as the branded Viagra. The bioequivalence of the generic drug to the original one is confirmed by relevant bioavailability studies when registering the drug with the FDA.
The fact is that the development of new brand-name drugs is not cheap (the drug launch on the market, according to different sources, costs from 1.5 to 2.5 billion dollars) and long (from the formula of the active molecule to the drug release on the market usually takes 6 – 10 years). So that the manufacturer can “beat off” the invested funds, a patent is issued for a new drug that first appears on the market, giving the exclusive right to produce it for a certain period of time. After the patent expires (usually 20 years), any pharmaceutical company can produce a drug copy (generic). Since they did not invest in the development and promotion of generic Viagra, their price is cheaper. The cost of the first copy product is usually 50% of the cost of the branded ones, the subsequent ones can be 2-3 times cheaper.
Many people think that a high price is a guarantee of quality, and a reliable drug cannot cost cheaply. But this is not 100% true. Especially when it comes to generics including Viagra produced by well-known pharmaceutical brands. Often, both original drugs and generics are produced on the same site using the same technology, and in order to register a generic, the manufacturer must conduct a full-fledged clinical study (although according to a simplified scheme) and prove that it is completely equivalent to the branded drug – Viagra.
The cost of generic Viagra depends on the cost of raw materials, staff salaries, costs of electricity and infrastructure, etc. They are different in each country and each company, therefore the price of a generic drug in some cases is 20%, and in others 60% of the branded one. In the USA, in order to keep the cost of medications in an affordable price segment, manufacturers carry out activities aimed at reducing production and business costs and modernizing production according to GMP standards (an international standard that guarantees high-quality production of medicines, i.e., compliance with international requirements).
So, there is no essence in searching the difference between generic and branded Viagra. It is important to clear out the difference between generic and branded drugs.