I'm taking Benicar hct 40/25 but even with insurance it's 60.00 a month.I heard losartan was cheaper but I don't know what is the right dosage. Does anyone know if there is much difference in the two drugs?
Is there much difference between Benicar HCT and Losartan?
Question posted by cingrubb on 12 Sep 2011
Last updated on 7 December 2017
3 Answers
Don't know if benicar is bettr
Both medications are angiotensin II recepters. Benicar hct is fairly new (last 5 years? according to my physician) and thus it will be a while before generics are available. Therefore, Benicar HCT is a "primary" or patented drug and the patents do not expire for quite some time. It will continue to be expensive due to its exclusivity through patents. Losartan is a generic angiotensin II for a brand name drug Cozaar. Since it is a generic it will be cheaper by far than Benicar. However, Losartan DOES come in a form that contains HCT. I currently take Losartan HCT instead of Benicar HCT. Your question is from 2011. In 2012 I received my first prescription for Benicar. I have no insurance and the price tag at the cheapest pharmacy was almost $8 a tablet at Walgreens and Walmart. Perhaps your physician will consider Losartan HCT for you to cut costs. After a year of use, I find that I am not experiencing any problems but that isn't true for everyone. But it is worth checking into!
'Benicar HCT is a "primary" or patented drug and the patents do not expire for quite some time' - Yes that is true - but you can already buy the generic form from outside the US - via the Canadian mail order pharmacies for instance. My generic for 'Benicar' costs me around $60 a month (instead of $249 month for Benicar) that way - my drug plan via Aetna will not cover Benecar ! Nice !
Yes, Benicar has an additional ingredient called Hydrochlorothiazide. Hydrochlorothiazide is a diuretic (water pill) that helps prevent your body from absorbing too much salt, which can cause fluid retention and an increase in blood pressure.
Losartan is very similar to the other ingredient in Benicar - olmesartan. They belong to the same class of drugs called angiotensin II receptor antagonists. However the addition of the diuretic may make Benicar HCT more effective for you.
Ask your pharmacist for suggestions of cheaper alternatives.
https://www.drugs.com/mtm/benicar-hct.html
Suzanne66... you are wrong. Hydrochlorothiazide is differemt drug that they sometimes add to medications for diuretic purposes and it can be added to both Benicar and to losartan. It is not a difference between the two drugs. The difference between the two is the base drug. Benicar is Olmesartan, and the base for Losartan is Cozaar, They are two different drugs that do the same thing, Losartan is just less expensive.
I switched from Benicar to losartan without any problems and losartan is much cheaper!
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benicar, benicar hct, losartan, dosage, insurance
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