From the busting the myth that only expensive patented psychiatric drugs are preferred by TMAP and other programs:
US clears first generic forms of Pfizer's Zoloft
Fri Jun 30, 2006 1:15 PM ET
WASHINGTON, June 30 (Reuters) - U.S. regulators have approved the first generic forms of Pfizer Inc.'s
antidepressant Zoloft, the Food and Drug Administration said on Friday.
The FDA said it cleared generic versions of Zoloft tablets made by Ivax, which was recently acquired by Teva Pharmaceutical Industries , as well as a liquid form made by Roxane Laboratories, a unit of privately held Boehringer Ingelheim.
The cheaper, generic competitors are expected to cut sharply into use of brand-name Zoloft, which had U.S. sales of nearly $2.6 billion in 2005.
Pfizer announced on Thursday it would sell its own generic form of Zoloft at a discount price. Zoloft's generic name is sertraline.
Shares of New York-based Pfizer rose 1.3 percent to $23.55 in afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange. Shares of Israel-based Teva gained 1.3 percent to $31.71 on Nasdaq.