Broadening access and affordability

• Widening of healthcare coverage to larger populations
• Increased access to innovative health care
• Access to healthcare infrastructures
• European pharmerging markets: Poland, Romania, Turkey, Ukraine

Increasing complexity

• Diversification of regional environments – decentralisation has led to the appearance of new influential stakeholders
• Divergence of enforcement and implementation of cost containment strategies

New cost containment measures

• Systematic drug evaluation/rationalisation of drug use
• Set up of mechanisms for manufacturers to contribute to system, e.g. risk sharing, collaborations
• Taking of pricing and market access responsibility by new decision makers
• Price cuts

Growth in generics between 2004 and 2008 has consistently outperformed the overall prescription medicines’ market growth. In Canada and the US growth between 2004 and 2009 in generics was 12%, while in the pharmerging market of Japan it was a staggering 14%.

Figure 1: Global pharmaceutical sales 2004-2009

Source: IMS Health, MIDAS, Market Segmentation, MAT Dec 2009.

The global generics market in 2009 reached US$87 billion while growth climbed to 9%, far outstripping that of the total market and also the generic growth in 2008, both of which were around 5%.

The power of payers – such as healthcare funds – has also contributed to this increase in generic uptake, with price and ‘value-for-money’ becoming increasingly important. The power of patients to choose has also been increasing in the past few years, whereas prescribers are seeing a loss of power. Patients are increasingly being empowered to decide whether they will accept or demand generic substitution and more and more governments are demanding that prescribers use generic or INN names when prescribing.

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Reference

1. Sheppard A. Generics; opportunities for some, threats for others: strategy shifts and new business models as a consequence. 5th Annual Generics Asia Summit 2010; 2010 Oct 25–26; Singapore.