Who's using the Impax generic Renvela?

[ACRViper]

My insurance based Renvela provider (Express-Scripts) has sent me the Impax generic Sevelamer the last 2 times and I doubt I can insist on the real thing. So after searching here and reading that many people were awaiting the generic's release, I'm wondering how it's working for you.

A talked to a woman who said she'd tried generic and her phosphorus went up even as she resorted to mixing generic and Renvela tablets. I don't know what her physical condition is nor how much she's watching what she eats though.


Anybody else having problems with the Impax generic?

[jeannea]

Your doctor can sign Brand Name Necessary but your insurance company can then make you pay a lot more. I would think that this generic probably works fine. Most of these kind of tablets are pretty easy to copy. (I worked in generic drugs.) the real problem is you can't compare based on one or two blood test results. Did you eat the same things as you did for the last blood test? Did you take the same number of tablets each day for the last blood test? The only way to see if the generic is not working is if you're good about your diet for a few months yet your phosphorus steadily climbs.

[ACRViper]

Again, it was someone else whose phosphorus went up. I don't know anything else about her or her habits etc

She did say she felt itchy, and the numbers went up.


My Dr said yesterday that people respond differently to generics, and of course there's the question of why is the generic cheaper?

I was hoping to get feedback from members here who have used the generic .

[jeannea]

The generic is cheaper because the development costs are so much less. The original brand company has to find an ingredient that does something, figure out how to make the raw material, make it work in a tablet or capsule, do three levels of clinical trials, get it approved by the FDA. It takes a minimum of 10 years unless the FDA thinks you're doing something amazing and even then it's 7-8 years. After spending 10 years developing the new drug, you only get about 7 years, sometimes less, to sell it and make up the money you spent the first 10 years.

The generic company has a list of all the ingredients. They don't have the exact amounts of the extra ingredients used to make it into a tablet but there are some common industry standards and it doesn't take that long to figure out something usually. Plenty of laboratory testing is required but not the clinical studies. They just have to do a short study giving some people the brand name and some people the generic and testing blood and urine. The easiest drugs can be copied and approved within about 2 years. There are some other crazy laws involved that often result in the brand name company helping the generic company make it and then they share profits.

There are exceptions to all this of course but that's the basics.

[ACRViper]

Thanks I'll call Express Scripts to see if I can insist on Brand Name Necessary without extra cost before my next order