Pharmaceutical Business

・Drugs are generally classified into prescription drugs and Over the Counter (OTC) and quasi-drugs

・Prescription drugs are further classified into New Prescription drugs and generic drugs

 

・ It takes a long time and huge R&D cost to sell one medical drug

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Source: Data from JPMA (FY2015-FY2019

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　* Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development Cost of Developing a New Drug (2014)

・Patent Term is twenty years from the filing date of the application

・If the patent expires, other pharmaceutical companys will be allowed to manufacture the drug, and generics will appear on the market