I had met people who have a complete knowledge of the generic medicines, yet they still choose the brand without giving any reason.
Why are they doing that?
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Because I use a real programming language, tell me what a T is and I’ll start caring
Obligatory fuck java generics.
What you don’t like to deal with this mess? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Covariance_and_contravariance_(computer_science)
“Jokes on you, I’m into that shit” Skeletor voice
It’s whatever you want it to be!
It all depends on the generics. I buy generic cereal. But only certain ones because other ones I have tried aren’t the same as the name brand and I like the name brand. Sometimes it’s as simple as texture difference or a difference in flavor.
In the case of my epi-pens, the generic injectors don’t work exactly the same and that can be a bit much in an emergency where your throat is swelling shut or you’re having difficulty breathing.
In the case of something over the counter, I’d still wager things like mouth feel, smell, or other sensory factors are a reason. Like for instance, I prefer the smooth coating on Advil to the matte coating on Motrin or other ibuprofen generic meds.
In fact, I do prefer to buy generics. There are dozens of us!
I’ll gladly buy some generics but I am firmly on brand name stuff with some types of cheese… especially preshredded. I got some generic cheeses in the past that were basically flavored plastic
I’m guessing it’s because of concerns about quality control.
For example, I used to use generic eye drops. Then there were a bunch of recalls on eye drops made in India because they weren’t kept sterile and people were getting eye infections. So now I make sure to only buy eye drops that are manufactured in countries with actual controls on health codes. It turns out that imposing that restriction elliminated all the generic options. I’m certainly not happy to be paying double for brand name pataday, but I don’t care to mess with the chance of eye infections.
Their reasons will remain a mystery. If they don’t want to tell you, you’ll just never know.
As for me, I use generic medications whenever I have to pay for it out of pocket. If insurance covers it, I’m not putting in the effort to make sure I get generic.
Many generic meds are made in filthy factories with no quality control.
The FDA is slacking on testing generics for quality assurance, but third parties and other countries are revealing problems.
https://www.statnews.com/2024/08/12/fda-withdraw-approval-400-plus-tainted-drugs/
It’s interesting that you put the blame on the FDA. I’m not in the USA, but the effectiveness of a body like the FDA, the FCC, the EPA, FAA and all the others is directly related to how much money they have available and who is running the department; these are determined by politicians.
In other words, medical oversight depends entirely on whom you vote for and why voting is important. It’s the “little” things like this, not the defence or education budgets capturing the headlines that make the difference.
Though there are in some cases specific reasons to use certain brands, its usually just due to marketing, branding, and near total ignorance.
There is significantly less oversight on generics vs brand. As a medical provider I have seen numerous examples of generics not working nearly as well as brand and I have switched patients back to brand. YMMV.
In Denmark the pharmacies are required to offer the genetic version. I generally take it. I know that a lot of elderly can get confused if their medicine changes, so that’s one reason for choosing the brand name.
Training
My mom had medicare and a good secondary. Looking back, i should have requested name brands for her. With generic, there are often a couple of different patterns (size, shape, color) that you get and it makes it really difficult for older people to take their meds correctly.
