The Lipitor story: Drug companies brace for losses as patents expire on this and other popular medications

News outlets analyze the impact that generic Lipitor could have on costs and the "era of 'blockbuster drugs'" as well as the strategies from Lipitor's maker to block its generic competitors. Meanwhile, some of these generics are already reaching the marketplace.

The New York Times: Senators Question Deals To Block Generic Lipitor
Three senators on Wednesday asked the drug maker Pfizer and five other health companies to detail their agreements to block prescriptions of generic versions of the cholesterol drug Lipitor and sell only the Pfizer brand-name version (Wilson, 12/1).

Los Angeles Times: Lipitor's Patent Loss Is Consumers' Gain
For millions of Americans, prescription drugs are about to get a lot cheaper. Patents on some of the most popular medications will expire over the next few years, giving consumers access to less expensive generic versions -; and costing the pharmaceutical industry an estimated $100 billion in lost sales through 2015 (Helfand, 12/1).

PBS Newshour: As Lipitor's Patent Expires, Is Era of 'Blockbuster Drugs' Over?
There's a variety of new drugs for treating -; anticoagulants, or blood thinners, for treating a condition called atrial fibrillation that are just coming to market. Some of them could be blockbuster, if, by that, I mean billion-dollar-a-year drugs. But we may see fewer of them than we have in the past, in part because people are looking much more carefully at how we spend every health care dollar (Warner and Avorn, 11/30).

The Philadelphia Inquirer: Top-Seller Lipitor Goes Generic
A big slice of the U.S. prescription-drug market will change Wednesday, when Lipitor, the world's best-selling drug, gets generic competition. Black Friday-like rushes on pharmacies are not expected, but the change, at least in theory, will lower prices for patients trying to lower their cholesterol. The drug still requires a doctor's prescription. Ian Read, chief executive of Lipitor's maker, Pfizer Inc., said recently that the company hoped to create a nonprescription version. But that is at least several years away and would need approval from the Food and Drug Administration (Sell, 11/30).

The Wall Street Journal: Watson Pharmaceuticals Launches Generic Lipitor
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration Wednesday approved the first generic version of Pfizer Inc.'s cholesterol-lowering drug Lipitor. Earlier Wednesday Watson Pharmaceuticals Inc. began selling a generic version of Lipitor, marking the long-awaited loss of U.S. market exclusivity for the world's top-selling drug. Watson, of Parsippany, N.J., is selling a so-called authorized generic version of Lipitor, in partnership with Pfizer for the next five years (Loftus, 11/30).

Bloomberg: Ranbaxy's Lipitor Copy Threatens Pfizer Sales
Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd. (RBXY)'s copy of the $10.7 billion Lipitor cholesterol pill was released in the U.S., sending its share up the most in six months and threatening sales for Pfizer Inc. (PFE) Ranbaxy, India's biggest drugmaker, won approval to sell generic versions of the world's top-selling medicine by the Food and Drug Administration yesterday. The company, based near New Delhi, will share profit on the first six months' sales with Israel's Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (TEVA), Ranbaxy said today, adding that terms of the agreement won't be disclosed (Edney and Narayan, 12/1).