{"id":27585,"date":"2019-09-30T13:00:39","date_gmt":"2019-09-30T13:00:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.edrugstore.com\/blog\/?p=27585"},"modified":"2019-09-25T17:52:37","modified_gmt":"2019-09-25T17:52:37","slug":"average-price-of-3-ed-drugs-drops-over-the-summer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.edrugstore.com\/blog\/erectile-dysfunction\/average-price-of-3-ed-drugs-drops-over-the-summer\/","title":{"rendered":"Average Price of 3 ED Drugs Drops over the Summer"},"content":{"rendered":"

As a harbinger of what could be things to come, average prices of America\u2019s top three ED medications and their generic equivalents began moving downward over the past summer.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Introduction<\/h3>\n

A hopeful sign has emerged over the summer on the erectile dysfunction drugs front. The average prices of the three most popular brand-name medications, as well as those of their generic equivalents, have begun to trend downward. It\u2019s not always been a dramatic drop in prices, but it hopefully augurs well for the future direction of medication prices in the ED market.<\/p>\n

Although relatively recent, the introduction of generic competition into the U.S. market for ED drugs has certainly played a key role in helping to roll average prices somewhat lower or at the very least keep them from creeping higher.<\/p>\n

Although relatively limited thus far, generic competition is certain to increase, with the greatest number of new contenders most likely to appear for the most popular ED drugs. As of late 2018-2019, those most popular ED drugs were Viagra and its generic equivalent, sildenafil citrate; Cialis and tadalafil, its generic version; and Levitra and vardenafil hydrochloride.<\/p>\n

Top ED Drugs\u2019 Market Shares<\/h3>\n

In an eye-opening report on the market share of America\u2019s best-selling ED drugs, CNBC.com<\/a> said in May 2019 that GoodRx.com data showed that Viagra and its generic version dominate the U.S. market for the three most popular ED drugs. Together, Viagra and sildenafil accounted for 65 percent of all top three ED drug prescriptions filled between December 1, 2018, and January 31, 2019.<\/p>\n

Coming in a distant second with 30 percent of the ED drug market were Cialis and its generic equivalent, tadalafil. That leaves Levitra and its generic equivalent, vardenafil hydrochloride, with only 5 percent of the market.<\/p>\n

Viagra has the advantage of being the first of this new line of oral ED medications, winning approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in March 1998. It had the ED medication market to itself for the first five years and perhaps has earned the same iconic status as Coca-Cola and Kleenex, which are sometimes used to represent all the products of their type, if only in name.<\/p>\n

\"Miniature
Bucking the overall upward trend in drug prices, Viagra, Cialis, and Levitra prices seem to have softened over the summer months.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Summer’s Price Trends<\/h3>\n

While the summer months of 2019 have seen declines in both brand-name and generic equivalents, the biggest declines have generally occurred among the generic versions of these popular ED drugs. This makes sense because it is the generics that are most likely to face direct head-to-head competition when other generics are introduced.<\/p>\n

Obviously, the brand-name ED drugs face competition from their generic equivalents, but it\u2019s likely that much of the price-cutting likely to occur has already happened.<\/p>\n

Viagra has faced generic competition since December 2017, although it\u2019s been somewhat constrained by the fact that Pfizer\u2019s U.S. patent on Viagra won\u2019t actually expire until April 2020. Teva, which markets the only non-Pfizer-related generic for Viagra, must pay a royalty to Pfizer for the privilege of marketing its generic version in advance of that patent expiration.<\/p>\n

First Generics Often Get Exclusivity<\/h3>\n

The first generic version of a popular brand-name drug, whether it\u2019s for treating ED, asthma, or some other medical disorder, usually gets a period of exclusivity — 180 days most commonly. This means that for that half-year period, that single generic is the only one that can be legally marketed in the United States under FDA regulations.<\/p>\n

The Viagra generic situation is a bit different because as previously noted, Pfizer\u2019s U.S. patent on Viagra is still in force and will be for several more months. Thus, Teva has been able to market its generic formulation of Viagra only under the terms of an agreement it struck with Pfizer back in December 2013.<\/p>\n

That agreement stipulated that Viagra would allow Teva to market the generic, beginning in December 2017, in return for a licensing fee to be paid by Teva until April 2020. Because Teva\u2019s generic is marketed only at the pleasure of Pfizer and under its terms, it did not and does not enjoy market exclusivity.<\/p>\n

Launched at virtually the same time as Teva\u2019s sildenafil citrate, Greenstone LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Pfizer, also brought its brand of generic Viagra to market. This gives Pfizer a significant revenue stream that includes its sales of brand-name Viagra, licensing fees from Teva, and a share of the revenues from its subsidiary\u2019s sales of generic Viagra.<\/p>\n

Viagra\/Sildenafil Prices<\/h3>\n

Based on data gathered during Secure Medical\u2019s monthly national surveys of ED drug prices, the average price of Viagra has declined from $79.28 per 100-milligram pill in July 2019 to $76.99 in September 2019. While that\u2019s a price drop of just under 3 percent across the three-month period, it\u2019s a positive sign.<\/p>\n

Hopefully, that downtrend in these prices will continue, albeit at a slow pace, but could pick up momentum in April 2020 when new generic competition can be expected to begin.<\/p>\n

Much more dramatic was the summer decline in the average price for sildenafil citrate, the generic form of Viagra. Prices went from an average of $33.56 per 100-milligram pill in July 2019 to $23.08 in September. That represents a whopping decline of over 31 percent.<\/p>\n