(AGENPARL) - Rome, June 4 - FederAnziani applauds Aifa which, according to the third age federation, puts an end to the controversy on the subject of equivalents through the declarations of its general manager on shopping for generic drugs. Whether we are talking about "shopping" as Aifa does or "zapping" as Federanziani does, it makes no difference: switching from one drug to another and compromising adherence to therapy is a concrete risk and a now widespread practice. The declarations of the president of Federanziani, Roberto Messina, had triggered the debate on the subject, who, while appreciating the success of generics, sounded the alarm of 'pharmaceutical zapping'. So that reports the online weekly 'Children and Family Magazine'. The data on the sales of equivalent drugs, released by Assogenerici, show a marked increase, following the entry into force, in August 2012, of the law which establishes the obligation to indicate the active ingredient in prescriptions. An increase that should be interpreted positively and "brings us closer to Europe", according to the Minister of Health Beatrice Lorenzin, but which at the same time represents the other side of the net loss of turnover of companies producing "branded" drugs, as Farmindustria states : “if the objective of the introduction of the rule which provides for the mandatory prescription of the active ingredient in the recipe was to shift market shares from one group of companies to another, the objective has been achieved. – comments Massimo Scaccabarozzi, president of Farmindustria - We acknowledge that in the face of companies that lose more than 70% of their turnover, there are others that instead increase their revenues”. On the other hand, Assogenerici expressed satisfaction with the positive trend of the market for equivalents: "Having simply asked the doctor to also indicate the molecule next to the trade name, if any - comments Enrique Hausermann, president of Assogenerici, - was useful to clarify to the patient that switching to the equivalent does not mean 'changing drug', but only changing the packaging and price”. To curb the enthusiasm, highlighting the problematic aspects linked to the use of generic drugs, are the first doctors, who denounce the confusion that has arisen in recent months. Months that have seen an increased propensity for drug changes and therapeutic discontinuity, due to a regulation still to be perfected. "Yes to generics - comments the President of FederAnziani Roberto Messina - but those who have to prescribe them are general practitioners, i.e. the only ones who know our clinical history and who therefore we believe are authorized to prescribe drugs, and not pharmacists ”. From Federanziani, therefore, as well as from FIMMG, a convinced yes to Assogenerici's proposal to sit around a table to settle once and for all the problems related to the use of generic drugs immediately arrives. On the other hand, those who do not seem to digest the observations of the patients are the pharmacists. The shift of decision-making power from the doctor to the pharmacist, which has taken place in recent months, according to Federanziani is exposing citizens to serious risks and in particular the over 65s, who represent the main drug users. “Citizens – Messina explains – recognize the family doctor as the guarantor of the chemicals they take. A third party such as the pharmacist should not be left with the choice of which box to deliver
