With Blockbusters Coming Off Patent Pfizer Needs Chantix’s Revenue
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Pfizer, one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world, finds itself in a precarious financial situation as many of its best selling drugs have either already come off patent or will come off patent over the next few years. “Coming off patent” is a term used to describe when a drug company’s patent for a pharmaceutical expires. This allows generic versions of the drug to be produced and then usually sold for a fraction of the drug’s original price. Typically, if a generic version of a drug exists, insurance providers will not pay for the brand name version of the drug.
Two of Pfizer’s best selling drugs, the antidepressant Zoloft and the high blood pressure medication Norvasc, have both come off patent in the last two years. The combined revenues for these two drugs have already dropped by half, and analysts expect further declines over the next few years. While these two drugs represent a big financial blow to Pfizer, the company will face even tougher times starting in 2010.
It is anticipated that drugs representing 41 percent of Pfizer's total sales will come off patent between 2010 and 2012. The biggest blow will come when Pfizer’s blockbuster cholesterol drug Lipitor, the best selling drug in the world, comes off patent in 2010. Lipitor is responsible for approximately $13 billion in sales. Other well known drugs coming off patent in this time frame include: Viagra, Aricept, Geodon and Detrol.
To make matters worse, Pfizer’s launch of its inhaled insulin drug Exubera failed miserably. The company announced it was abandoning the drug and wrote off $2.8 billion in costs associated with its launch. Pfizer had hoped that Exubera would become the company’s next blockbuster and help to replace some of the revenue lost to patent expirations.
Pfizer Needs a Homerun - But are you at risk?
With all of these problems, Pfizer needs a new hit drug. This probably explains why the company is promoting its smoking cessation drug Chantix so aggressively, even though the drug has been linked with suicidal and violent behavior. The promotion appears to be working; Chantix sales exploded to $883 million in 2007 compared to $101 million in 2006. It has yet to be determined if the recent warnings about the aforementioned side effects will impact 2008 sales. Pfizer doesn’t appear to want to take any chances; it recently launched an aggressive direct to consumer advertising campaign, right around the same time as the warnings were added to Chantix’s label.
Pfizer wants smokers to ask themselves: ‘Is the potential risk of psychological problems worth it if you can successfully quit smoking?’ Without knowing all the facts, most smokers would probably agree that it is worth a reasonable amount of risk to successfully quit smoking. However, if smokers were made aware of the potentially devastating risks of Chantix and were provided statistics showing the drug’s actual success rate (under 50%), many smokers would probably believe the risk outweighs the potential benefits.
Representing Chantix Users
Mark & Associates, P.C. is currently representing individuals and families that have been the victims of Chantix’s psychological side effects. These side effects are real and should not be minimized by Pfizer and prescribing physicians. Everyone knows smoking is a major health risk, and quitting should be the top priority for every smoker. But smokers need to ask themselves if it is prudent to try to solve one problem by taking a medication that can potentially cause even more serious problems.
Posted under: Dangerous Drugs • Chantix