The generic drugmaker Sandoz has launched a direct-to-consumer platform, according to Endpoints News, beginning with a single medication used to treat a growth disorder.
The move puts Sandoz alongside a growing number of pharmaceutical companies selling directly to patients. Endpoints News reports that Sandoz is adopting a system already used by several brand-name manufacturers, one designed to cut out-of-pocket costs for some patients.
For now, the platform is deliberately narrow. Rather than opening with a broad catalog of products, Sandoz is starting with just one drug, according to Endpoints News. That measured launch suggests the company is testing the model before deciding whether to expand it.
Direct-to-consumer platforms let drugmakers reach patients outside the traditional path, in which medicines move through insurers, pharmacy middlemen and retail pharmacies. By selling more directly, companies say they can lower what patients pay out of pocket. It is notable that Sandoz, known as a maker of generic medicines, is embracing an approach so far associated mainly with brand-name manufacturers, per Endpoints News.
Why it matters: as more drugmakers bypass the usual supply chain to sell straight to patients, the way Americans shop for and pay for prescriptions could shift — and Sandoz's entry signals the trend is spreading from brand-name giants to the generics industry.