Citizens' preferences for brand name drugs for treating acute and chronic conditions: a pilot study

Generic drugs have been advocated to decrease the proportion of healthcare costs devoted to drugs, but are still underused.

To assess citizens' preferences for brand name drugs (BNDs) compared with generic drugs for treating acute and chronic conditions.

A questionnaire with eight hypothetical scenarios describing four acute and four chronic conditions was developed, with willingness to pay (WTP) determined using a payment card system randomized to ascending (AO) or descending order (DO) of prices. The questionnaire was distributed with an explanation sheet, an informed consent form and a pre-stamped envelope over a period of 3 weeks in 19 community pharmacies in Lausanne, Switzerland. The questionnaire was distributed to every third customer who also had health insurance, understood French and was aged ≥16 years (up to a maximum of ten customers per day and 100 per pharmacy). The main outcome measure was preferences assessed by WTP for BNDs as compared with generics, and impact of participants' characteristics on WTP.

Of the 1800 questionnaires, 991 were distributed and 393 returned (pharmacy participation rate = 55%, subject participation rate = 40%, overall response rate = 22%); 51.7% were AO and 48.3% DO. Participants were predominantly women (62.6%) and of median age 62 years (range 16-90). The majority (70%) declared no WTP for BNDs as compared with generics. WTP was higher in people with an acute disease than in those with a chronic disease, did not depend on the type of chronic disease, and was higher in people from countries other than Switzerland.

Most citizens visiting pharmacies attribute no added value to BNDs as compared with generics, although some citizen characteristics affected WTP. These results could be of interest to several categories of decision makers within the healthcare system.