Copycat versions of Zocor and Pravachol increased the average number of prescriptions for cholesterol reducers by about 500,000 a month between October 2005 and December 2006, according to an analysis by Consumers Union, the advocacy group, and its publishing arm, Consumer Reports.

This represented a 3.9 percent rise - from an average of 12.6 million per month between the fall of 2005 and May 2006 - to an average of 13.1 million during the last six months of 2006. The two new generics arrived after Zocor and Pravachol lost patent protection last summer.

“This is further evidence that the market will eagerly welcome a significant new generic drug,” says Steve Findlay, who oversees Consumer Reports Best Buy Drugs. “It also shows that new generics can play an important role in extending treatment to more people.”

[tags]Consumers Union, Generics[/tags]