French Drugmakers Ready To Enter Generics Sector

French pharmaceutical companies are in the "starting blocks" to enter the generics market, according to a study by the consultancy Droit et Pharmacie on the market potential for generics in France.

Generics currently account for only 3.3% of the market, compared with one prescription in three in Germany and one in two in the USA. The position in France is now changing, according to the study, with the Ministry of Health already authorizing the commercialization of copies of 36 drugs in the list of the 100 best-sellers in France.

The authors of the report say that the weakness of French drug prices and the absence of a right of substitution do not constitute "absolute obstacles" to the development of generics, and that a financial analysis of the main generics producers indicates that the sector is, even now, profitable. Pharmacists in France are not allowed to substitute generics, the study notes, but there is nothing to prevent doctors prescribing them.