Yellow Norco Watson 853

I've found it difficult to get this across because the line being towed by pharmasists and drug companies is a disciplined one.. You might get an honest answer from an independently owned pharmacy pharmasist.. But the truth is there are in many cases huge differences in generics and brands.. Ask yourself why a brand is $150 to the gen. $4.00..?? What confuses me is why isn't the public at large more sure of this crooked racket.. I've got nerve damage and have been on Norco for years. This is a great drug to hold up as an example of the nastiness being practiced. Now you won't find wide ranging discrepancies in heart meds or blood pressure meds but you absolutely will within the opioid and benzo family of meds. If you really want the truth ask your doctor, they know.. That's why you'll find that they will write on a script fill as prescribed meaning fill the brand, please! My doctor sat me down and explained the truth and explained the unintentional weaknesses of generics such as less "bioavailability" issues with fillers and binders. My doctor makes sure I never fill a Valium script generically nor does he care for any Hydrocodone generic. And to be clear Norco is a Watson brand product, however, the Watson generic for Norco is NOT the same. It has both a lower strength (routinely 14-18% less) as well as binders and fillers that negatively affect the bioavailability of active ingredient..meaning you are getting much less of active ingredient to the blood. These are the nasty little secrets of our pharmaceutical industry in the US. Now if you ask a pharmacist you'll get the "line"..yeah, it meets all the FDA requirements of the brand drug and there for, yes it is the same.. Those are two different statements and answers.. Yes, they have to meet the FDA requirement but, no the requirement is not an identical match for the brand..not even strength..as the requirements in these classes of drugs are much loser than many others as I explained earlier.. If you cannot afford brand ask your doctor to write "fill as prescribed" and ask him to write the brand..then most insurance companies will cover the brand. And again-for the record-generics ARE NOT the same NOR AS EFFECTIVE as brand in the benzo or opioid family of drugs.. I hope I have helped at least someone..thank you.

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REPORT

Thank you for your helpful post!

And to add some details….

The information on the fluctuations in medications is publicly available for anyone that wants to research it, it's under the Hatch Waxman Act of 1984.

Under that act, in the interest of keeping costs as low as possible for uninsured people and to bring generic drugs to market faster, they are permitted to differ from the name brand, in the amount of the active ingredient by as much as plus or minus 20%. The FDA considers this amount to be therapeutically insignificant.

And most people never notice a difference when switching from one to the other. As an example, the few people posting about an issue on a site like this is a fraction of a percent of the actual number of people that are taking any given medication, at any given time. No one looks for a site to research such information and complain on, until they are having a problem. Which means that most people are just fine.

However, there are those, such as yourself that can be sensitive to even the slightest fluctuation in a medication. I have the same problem, so I do understand. For us, even the tiniest changes can cause complete misery.

In that case, the best thing you can do, is as you've stated, request that your doctor prescribe it as 'brand medically necessary" or whatever phrase is appropriate in your state on your prescription forms. That way, you no longer have to deal with any fluctuations.

Are there any other questions or comments?

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Hi. I also am prescribed Norco by my physician. I asked my regular pharmacist if I could please have the Watson brand Norco 10/325, and I received it filled with elongated yellow pills marked "Watson" and "853" on one side and a line through the center on the other. Is this the brand type Norco? Thanks.

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Hi. I also am prescribed Norco by my physician. I asked my regular pharmacist if I could please have the Watson brand Norco 10/325, and I received it filled with elongated yellow pills marked "Watson" and "853" on one side and a line through the center on the other. Is this the brand type Norco?
Also, you said "And to be clear Norco is a Watson brand product, however, the Watson generic for Norco is NOT the same. It has both a lower strength (routinely 14-18% less) as well as binders and fillers that negatively affect the bioavailability of active ingredient.."
What does a "Watson generic for Norco" look like if it is not the yellow pill with Watson imprinted on it? Thanks.

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My Watson hydrocodone/APAP " generic for Norco" says so on bottle, 10/325, was also yellow. I, however, do not remember the imprint on the pill itself as it has been many months since I have taken them. Last week I was given hydrocodone /APAP 10/500, Watson, and they were white. They did NOT work at all an actually made me sick. I have written to Watson about this, as many others have, but I have not received a response. I refuse to get this med, even tho now I am taking a lower dose, from my regular pharmacy bc Watson is what they stock & I don't ever want to go through what I did last week. There are many complaints on this forum about the new Watson hydro 10's. I have heard only the dyes were removed but the rest has stayed the same. I THINK NOT! If they didn't work for me, someone who hasn't been on a narcotic for quite some time, I can imagine what the others have been through!

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allowing a 20% difference is such BS. if your prescribed for several pills a day or more that adds up to a lot of pain reduction loss. the FDA should require all generics to contain 100% of the active ingredient in a formula that allows it to be effective and not add substandard binders and fillers that can make the medicine even less effective.

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I have Medicare and live in Oklahoma City will that phrase work in my state for my insurance? I've been told that Medicare won't cover any brand name drugs. Is that also true? Thank you in advance.

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