...AND CHEAPER...:

They used to be considered unlikely challengers to brand-name biologic drugs. Now some estimate (PDF) that they could save the U.S. health-care system tens of billions of dollars by 2024--once they win regulators' approval.  

So what is it about generic biologics that has changed? Mainly the viability of these complicated drugs that are made from living cells, compared to their brand-name counterparts, and how big drugmakers think about them. 

"A similar drug for less money--what's there not to like about that?" said Dr. Caleb Alexander, lead author of a study, released on Monday in Annals of Internal Medicine, comparing generic biologics with their brand-name counterparts, and co-director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Drug Safety and Effectiveness. Alexander and the other researchers found that one class of generics was similar to its branded counterparts in safety and effectiveness.

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