Abstract
Although medication costs make up one of the smallest portions of the overall expense of headache care, it is the segment of expense that often impacts the patient most directly. The advent of triptans marked a major advance in migraine therapy, but their high cost has limited their widespread use. Four options can be considered as potential means to reduce the cost of triptans. These include compulsory licensing, exclusive contracting, over-the-counter availability, and the introduction of generic triptans. Each method impacts the consumer, third-party payer, or pharmaceutical company in a different manner.
Similar content being viewed by others
References and Recommended Reading
Steinbrook R: Closing the affordability gap for drugs in low-income countries. N Engl J Med 2007, 357:1996–1999.
World Health Organization: WHO model list of essential medicines: 15th list. Available at http://www.who.int/medicines/publications. Accessed February 2008.
Department of Defense Pharmacoeconomic Center: Guidance for the new oral 5-HT receptor agonist (triptan) contract. Available at http://www.pec.ha.osd.mil/Contracts/triptan_contract_guidance.htm. Accessed December 2007.
Tfelt-Hansen P, Steiner TJ: Over-the-counter triptans for migraine. What are the implications? CNS Drugs 2007, 21:877–883.
On the Pharm: Sumatriptan approved for OTC use in the UK. Available at http://onthepharm.net/2006/05/imigran-imitrex-otc.html. Accessed January 2008.
Frank RG: The ongoing regulation of generic drugs. N Engl J Med 2007, 357:1993–1996.
Migraenikerforbundet; The Danish Migraine Association: The price of sumatriptan reaches an all time low. Available at http://www.migraeniker.dk/english/index_eng.htm. Accessed November 2008.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Solomon, G.D. Reducing the cost of headache medication. Current Science Inc 13, 227–230 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11916-009-0038-5
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11916-009-0038-5