The Spectacular Generic: Pharmaceuticals and the Simipolitical in Mexico

Cori Hayden's book "The Spectacular Generic" explores how generic drugs have transformed public health politics and pharmaceutical consumption in Latin America, focusing on the Mexican pharmacy chain Farmacias Similares and its proprietor, Víctor González Torres. González Torres capitalized on the creation of new markets for generic medicines, selling cheaper copies of leading-brand drugs across Latin America. However, his enterprise has also come to compete with the Mexican state, reorganizing the provision of medicine and basic health care for millions of people. Hayden juxtaposes this story with Dr. Simis less successful efforts in Argentina, illuminating the politics of generic substitution as a question that goes beyond substituting one drug for another.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 256 pages
Publication date: 03 February 2023
Publisher: Duke University Press

Cori Hayden's book, "The Spectacular Generic," delves into the profound impact of generic drugs on public health politics and the daily lives of pharmaceutical consumers in Latin America. Through a focused examination of the Mexican pharmacy chain Farmacias Similares and its proprietor, Víctor González Torres, Hayden showcases how generics have emerged as powerful commodities in a post-patent world. In the early 2000s, González Torres, known as "Dr. Simi," capitalized on the creation of new markets for generic medicines, offering cheaper versions of popular brand-name drugs across Latin America. However, Dr. Simi's enterprise extends beyond mere competition with multinational pharmaceutical companies. He has also challenged the Mexican state, reimagining the provision of medicine and basic health care for millions of people.

Hayden juxtaposes this narrative with Dr. Simi's less successful endeavors in Argentina, where he encountered a radically different configuration of pharmaceutical politics. By drawing upon these diverging trajectories, Hayden sheds light on the broader politics of generic substitution as a matter that extends beyond simply substituting one drug for another. Generic politics possess the potential to profoundly reshape the dynamics between consumers, states, and pharmaceutical markets, even as they remain incomplete in addressing the issues of cost and accessibility.

This book offers a valuable insight into the complex interplay between public health, economic interests, and political power in the realm of pharmaceutical consumption. It highlights the ways in which generic drugs have transformed the landscape of healthcare in Latin America, offering both opportunities and challenges for patients, policymakers, and industry stakeholders. Through its comprehensive analysis, "The Spectacular Generic" contributes to our understanding of the ongoing debates surrounding access to medicine, the role of the state in healthcare provision, and the dynamics of pharmaceutical markets in the global context.

Weight: 363g
Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781478019046