So you can save even more money by pricing your prescriptions at several drugstores. New York State Generic Drug Law A ccording to New York State law, pharmacists must dispense all drugs as prescribed by doctors. If your doctor prescribes a generic drug, the pharmacy should not substitute it with a more expensive brand-name drug. In a medical emergency the pharmacist can charge you the brand-name price, but otherwise, the pharmacist must bill you at the generic price. G eneric drugs are drugs marketed under their internationally recognized official names.
Many companies manufacture drugs of identical chemical composition to brand-name drugs.
Many commonly prescribed drugs have generic therapeutic equivalents. Some prescription drugs are protected by patent, however, and therefore no generic substitute exists. Always ask your doctor if there is a generic therapeutic equivalent to your medication and whether he or she plans to use it. Your pharmacist chooses generic substitutes from this list of FDA-approved drugs. Some generic drugs are readily available at pharmacies.