Screw 'em. I sold all my Pfizer stock years ago when it didn't move for over a year.

They'll just release a new drug that's basically the same thing and then send the hottie reps out to push it.

Big deal...Wake me when the patent for boner pills expires.

^let me play a violin for them

Occupy Pfizer! Fascist bastards. And sheeple just suck up those pills.

Fuggin Bizzy: Strings will be pulled. Oh yes, they will. Big Pharma does not lose money lightly.

If they aren't we're looking at the end of medical research. Big Pharma needed another big hit like Lipitor to justify their research spending. They haven't found anything major yet so R and D is going to get cut and cut and cut again.

rocinante721: Yaay!! Generics ..profiting from ingenuity they (a) didn't invent (b) didn't test (c) didn't market ...

/grabs popcorn


I too am celebrating the fact that we will now be able to by cheaper, generic versions of this wonder drug that blesses us with:

Common side effects of Lipitor Oral:
Indigestion Less Severe
Incomplete or Infrequent Bowel Movements Less Severe
Gas Less Severe
Stomach Cramps Less Severe

Infrequent side effects of Lipitor Oral:
Joint Pain Severe
Reaction due to an Allergy Severe
Throat Irritation Less Severe
Sinus Irritation and Congestion Less Severe
Dizzy Less Severe
Flu-Like Symptoms Less Severe
Pain Less Severe
Rash Less Severe
Head Pain Less Severe
Feel Like Throwing Up Less Severe
Diarrhea Less Severe

Rare side effects of Lipitor Oral:
Numbness, Tingling or Pain of Hands or Feet Severe
Muscle Problems Severe
Increased Pressure in Eyes Severe
Pancreatitis Severe
Eye Hemorrhage Severe
Angina Severe
Abnormal Heart Rhythm Severe
Blood Pressure Drop Upon Standing Severe
Hemorrhage of Blood Under the Skin Severe
Hemorrhage from the Gums Severe
Inflammation of the Esophagus Severe
Stomach or Intestinal Ulcer Severe
Inflammation of the Large Intestine Severe
Inflammation of the Lining of the Stomach and Intestines Severe
Blood coming from Anus Severe
Liver Failure Severe
Hepatitis Severe
Kidney Stone Severe
Inflammation of the Bladder Severe
Urinary Tract Infection Severe
Bloody Urine Severe
Epididymitis Severe
Cystic Disease of the Breast Severe
Enlarged Breasts Severe
Contact Dermatitis Severe
Erythema Multiforme Severe
Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis Severe
Stevens-Johnson Syndrome Severe
Stiff Neck Severe
Rupture of a Tendon Severe
Abnormal Increase in Muscle Tone Severe
Serious Muscle Damage that may Lead to Kidney Failure Severe
Muscle Pain Severe
Leg Cramps Severe
Fluid Retention in the Legs, Feet, Arms or Hands Severe
Trouble Breathing Severe
Chest Pain Severe
Elevation of Proteins in the Urine Severe
Abnormal Liver Function Tests Severe
Life Threatening Allergic Reaction Severe
Low Blood Sugar Severe
Gout Severe
Anemia Severe
Decreased Blood Platelets Severe
Lazy Eye Less Severe
Dry Eye Less Severe
Ringing in the Ears Less Severe
Inflammation of the Nose Less Severe
Bronchitis Less Severe
Dry Mouth Less Severe
Painful, Red or Swollen Mouth Less Severe
Bleeding Not Related to Menstrual Period Less Severe
Sun-Sensitive Skin Less Severe
Itching Less Severe
Hair Loss Less Severe
Arthritis Less Severe
Inflammation of the Sac Surrounding the Joint - Bursitis Less Severe
Drowsiness Less Severe
Loss of Memory Less Severe
Feeling Faint Less Severe
Chronic Trouble Sleeping Less Severe
Fever Less Severe
Low Energy Less Severe
Excessive Sweating Less Severe
Taste Problems Less Severe
Loss of Appetite Less Severe
Heart Throbbing or Pounding Less Severe
Swollen Lymph Nodes Less Severe
Throwing Up Less Severe
Frequent Urination Less Severe
High Blood Sugar Less Severe
Numbness and Tingling Less Severe
Feeling Weak Less Severe
Altered Interest in Having Sexual Intercourse Less Severe


God Bless Pfizer.

I sure hope they didn't lose money on this drug.

ThisNameSux: They'll just release a new drug that's basically the same thing and then send the hottie reps out to push it.

This

Fuggin Bizzy: Strings will be pulled. Oh yes, they will. Big Pharma does not lose money lightly.

Do you?

doesn't Pfizer also have Viagra though?

Cue world's tiniest violin!!!! They'll just bribe more doctors to write their crappier products.

/duh!

Plant Rights Activist: If they aren't we're looking at the end of medical research. Big Pharma needed another big hit like Lipitor to justify their research spending. They haven't found anything major yet so R and D is going to get cut and cut and cut again.

We aren't the ones you have to lobby for subsidies so save it for someone else.

I'm sure they have a continuation patent in the works, that will be so much better than the original Lipitor. It will be Lipitor XL! or some bullshiat. And they will have a commercial come out that says ask your doctor about Lipitor XL TODAY!

rocinante721:
Yaay!! Generics ..profiting from ingenuity they (a) didn't invent (b) didn't test (c) didn't market ...

/grabs popcorn

Half the time the major companies didn't invent it either. They buy the research from universities that have to sell it at a fraction of the cost. Those that are invented, are insufficiently tested for the past decade in particular.

So really what did they do? They spent all the money on marketing to try and convince everyone that they needed to be on the drug and be damned with the side effects and the cost. You have to buy this drug!

I'm okay with this. Develop a product that alleviates a medical condition, make an epic farkload of money, lose your exclusive right to the product after a reasonable amount of time... and then use that money to develop another life-saving product. Wash, rinse, repeat.

rocinante721: Yaay!! Generics ..profiting from ingenuity they (a) didn't invent (b) didn't test (c) didn't market ...

/grabs popcorn

Sucks for the 1%!

But drugs like claritin went off patent loooong ago and they still sell well because of brand name and familiarity.

TFA: Howard Weintraub, a cardiologist at New York University, says many patients on those drugs come in and beg for free samples.

Yay, America! Where sick people are reduced to begging their physicians for free samples of essential medications that they can't afford.

USA #1!!!

Good, maybe they'll push it less. Every article I've seen from outside of pharma's marketing departments questions the overall effectiveness of artificially changing cholesterol levels with statins. Basically my clients will be getting their placebos for a lot cheaper.

I'll still be paying $400 for my asthma meds until the patent expires a year from now, thank you very much, Merck. The patent should have expired in August of this year, but they got an extension. Hooray for them.

anyone else notice that the recent drug commercials contain the phrase, "[drug name] ... is believed to be effective for the treatment of ... [syndrome]"? Is that because they aren't testing them as much, or at all?

/cousin is in a testing lab for some company
//they just sold the testing branch of the company
///hope she keeps her job

I work for big pharma, so suck it. Haters gonna hate.

Plant Rights Activist: Fuggin Bizzy: Strings will be pulled. Oh yes, they will. Big Pharma does not lose money lightly.

If they aren't we're looking at the end of medical research. Big Pharma needed another big hit like Lipitor to justify their research spending. They haven't found anything major yet so R and D is going to get cut and cut and cut again.

It gets worse than that, Big Pharma are not doing much work on antibiotics, basically because if they get a really effective one, Doctors (w|s)hould put it at the back of the cupboard and only use it as a last resort to prolong its effectiveness against Multiple drug resistant bugs (new window)

So no big sales till it becomes a font line drug in perhaps 10-20 years time long after the patent have expired. There is a pretty good case for much longer patent periods on antibiotics simply for the public good.

Amos, side effects can happen with any drug. It depends upon the drug and the person who's taking it. I've never had a negative side effect with Lipitor. Others do. Chalk it up to the fact that we humans are so farking weird.

mercator_psi: Amos, side effects can happen with any drug.

Yes, well, human biology is complicated. If a drug doesn't have any side effects, it doesn't have any "front effect" either.

If someone tries to sell you a miracle drug that's 100% risk-free with no side effects, they are selling you snake-oil. You might as well just throw your money out the window.

Jamdug!:
Yep. Even if they cured cancer, they would shelf the cure until they could come up with a way for people to live with cancer and have to take drugs to keep it in remission.

bastards.

If?

rocinante721: Yaay!! Generics ..profiting from ingenuity they (a) didn't invent (b) didn't test (c) didn't market ...

/grabs popcorn

Yeaay! People will be able to afford their meds!

ThisNameSux: They'll just release a new drug that's basically the same thing and then send the hottie reps out to push it.

Whatever keeps the hottie reps a-comin'.

/clinical guy. sometimes visual stimulation is the prescription.

ohmyvariousgods: I'll still be paying $400 for my asthma meds until the patent expires a year from now, thank you very much, Merck. The patent should have expired in August of this year, but they got an extension. Hooray for them.

One of my asthma meds runs about $160 a month for the adult dose. The pediatric dose works just as well, but since I'm a grownup, I obviously must take the full size (Read PRICE) dose. I regularly get little notices that I'm not filling the prescription often enough. Pill splitter FTW! My poor doctor is caught in the middle, as he writes the prescription that works for me, but the pharmacy overrides and notifies everybody of my birthdate again.

rocinante721: The Coke formula is proprietary & not patented AFAIK, which is why only the top execs know its formula so it remains un-copied, in theory.

You can recreate the soda easily, you can't recreate the brand name. Give someone Coke and "Soda", most people will say they like the Coke better even if the two products are exactly the same because of the effect of the brand name.

Doc Daneeka: If someone tries to sell you a miracle drug that's 100% risk-free with no side effects, they are selling you snake-oil. You might as well just throw your money out the window.

I took that advice once, and my cold went away 4 days later.

My heart bleeds for them--at least, it will if I don't take my new genericized blood coagulant.

Why don't they take a tip from Disney and have the government change the laws to let them keep patents longer?

My buddy who is a Pharmacist claims that while the research shows that this drug does in fact alter the cholesterol numbers that tests show you, the studies do *NOT* show that it alters the incidence of heart attacks.

In essence he says you're paying for a drug that makes the numbers change but has not shown to actually decrease the chance of heart attacks.

What sort of idiot doctor prescribes Lipitor when there are plenty of other statins that suck less and are already available at $4/month without insurance?