Pharmacy Daily | Spain generics by law

THE Spanish government has this week passed new legislation which requires doctors to prescribe medicines by their generic name rather than by brand. Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said the bill aimed to save the government €2.4 billion (A$3.5b) a year. Scripts must be written with only the active ingredients of the medicine, and pharmacies will be required to provide the cheapest available versions of each medication. The change only affects drugs which are out of patent, but also makes it illegal for doctors to even tell patients what the originator brand name for their prescription is. “The interests of the big drugs companies must give way to public interest, and what matters is reducing the deficit and lowering the drugs bill for millions of people who use public health services,” said Josu Erkoreka from the Basque Party, which backed the legislation.

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