Generic pharmaceutical price decay
Okay, so you know how sometimes when you go to the store, you see two different brands of the same thing, but one is cheaper than the other? Like maybe there's a brand name cereal that costs more than a store-brand cereal that seems pretty much the same? That's kind of like what happens with medicine too.
When a company makes a new medicine, they're the only ones who can sell it for a while. That's to make sure they get to make their money back and maybe some more money for all the hard work they put into making it. But after a while, other companies can start making the same medicine too. Those other companies are called "generic" companies.
Because the new medicine was the only one available for a while, it could cost a lot of money. But once the generic companies start making it too, the price can start to go down. Sometimes it goes down a lot. This is called "price decay."
So basically, when lots of different companies can make the same medicine, it can become cheaper for everyone to buy. That's good news for people who need the medicine but maybe can't afford the fancy brand name version.
When a company makes a new medicine, they're the only ones who can sell it for a while. That's to make sure they get to make their money back and maybe some more money for all the hard work they put into making it. But after a while, other companies can start making the same medicine too. Those other companies are called "generic" companies.
Because the new medicine was the only one available for a while, it could cost a lot of money. But once the generic companies start making it too, the price can start to go down. Sometimes it goes down a lot. This is called "price decay."
So basically, when lots of different companies can make the same medicine, it can become cheaper for everyone to buy. That's good news for people who need the medicine but maybe can't afford the fancy brand name version.