Produced in compliance with branded standards and made available at a fraction of the cost, generic drugs are quickly becoming the prescription of choice among Americans. Mary Szela, Senior Vice President of Global Strategic Marketing and Services at Abbott Pharmaceutical Products Group, has seen various medication through to the end of their life cycles, where some become pills distributed in packing labeled simply with a common ingredient.
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| Mary Szela Image Credit: noiselabs.com |
Over a hundred years ago, then-novice pharmaceutical companies began extensive research to determine the illnesses which needed a more consistently effective remedy. Working in collaboration with medical experts, biomedicine firms developed solutions for a range of ailments. As new diseases were discovered, medication was developed to eliminate their symptoms or manage their side effects. Each medical breakthrough or new drug formula was protected by a patent. The cost of all this research, testing, and development has resulted in the average price consumers pay for branded medication.
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| Mary Szela Image Credit: law.upenn.edu |
Mary Szela values the investment a brand represents in the pharmaceutical industry. It is a testament to the development efforts made in producing the drug. In essence, consumers are not paying companies to continue providing the medication; they are actually paying the medicine makers back. However, patents only protect medication for a maximum of 20 years, and only in some cases do the makers renew the patent. When a pharmaceutical company opts not to renew a patent, they are essentially allowing the drug to be provided at a lower cost. It may seem like pharmaceutical companies are in competition with generic drug providers but, in fact, companies have already made a return on their investment by the time generic versions of their drug are made.
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| Mary Szela Image Credit: marieclaire.com |
Learn more about Mary Szela on this website.
