مقاله انگلیسی رایگان در مورد ادغام ها و اکتساب ها در بخش داروی عمومی – NCBI 2017

In the wake of expired patents and the introduction of biosimilars, the $61 billion generic drug manufacturing industry in the United States is expected to continue growing [1]. Generic drugs (including biosimilars) accounted for 89% in the United States of all dispensed prescription drugs in 2016, up from 72% in 2008 and 43% in 1996 [2]. Since generic drugs are priced lower than their branded counterparts, they generate cost savings for individuals and drug plans [1, 3]. Record numbers of mergers and acquisitions in the pharmaceutical industry were reported for the years 2014 and 2015, based on the announcement date of the deals [4, 5]. The literature has cited several potential reasons for pharmaceutical companies pursuing mergers and acquisitions. They include: achieving economies of scale and scope, gaining corporate control, acquiring specific assets such as patents, and buying out dying or financially weak companies [1, 6]. The literature on mergers and acquisitions has typically focused on the brand-name pharmaceutical sector and the relationship between mergers and acquisitions and research and development or productivity [7–10], which is not relevant to understanding the dynamics in the generic drug sector. In the case of generics, we find little literature on the causes, impacts, and magnitude of mergers and acquisitions in that sector. Mergers and acquisitions in the generic sector are often considered a business decision to increase efficiency gains [4]. However, studies analyzing increasing prices of generics and drug shortages have observed that mergers and acquisitions were often a factor associated with significant price increases, drug shortages, supply disruption, and a reduced number of competing manufacturers [3, 11–17]. Increasing generic drug prices and drug shortages have become pressing issues particularly in the United States [2, 13]. Before 2013, price increases for generic drugs were less significant in the United States, while since 2013 changes in these drugs’ prices substantially increased overall drug spending [14]. According to a 2014 study by the Drugs Channel Institute and Pembroke Consulting, the price of half of the generic drugs available in the United States increased from the previous 12 months [3]. A study of 1120 generic drugs demonstrated that drugs with fewer suppliers were more likely to be associated with price increases. Generics with a duopoly, near-monopoly, and monopoly were associated with price increases of 29%, 59% and 116% respectively between 2008 and 2013 as compared to drugs with the highest level of competition [17]. While increases in generic drug prices and shortages are related to market competition levels, mergers and acquisitions carry the risk of decreasing competition [16, 17].