The same name, same ingredient, the difference between imported medicine and domestic medicine

Take the hypercholesterolemic drugs Arlo and Lipitor for example. Both are statins that regulate blood lipids and have the same composition and effect. Lipitor is crystallized atorvastatin calcium, and Arlo is amorphous atorvastatin calcium. The difference between the two is due to the high impurity content, poor stability and easy degradation of the amorphous atorvastatin calcium. There is no real difference in efficacy between the two. The reason for the difference in price is, on the one hand, the difference between domestic and foreign processes, and on the other hand, the import of drugs is to tariff.

We should not always believe that imports are always very good. In recent years, the state has attached great importance to the level of drug production and supervision and strongly supported innovation. The quality standards of Chinese pharmaceutical companies are now in line with those of Europe and the United States, while the quality of domestic drugs is gradually catching up with, or even surpassing, the international standards. In addition, in order to make life-saving drugs available to the masses, the country has completely abolished the tariff on anticancer drugs and other drugs.