Apotex attracts prime science grads with continued growth in generic pharmaceuticals
Huge growth in generic pharmaceuticals means great job opportunities for science grads. Here’s a look at the how pharmaceutical jobs are setting new growth records.
Generic Pharmaceutical Growth Means Jobs For Grads
The global generic pharmaceutical industry is undergoing a major boom as a variety of factors begin to converge. The most prevalent is the ‘Patent Cliff’, which describes the expiry of patents on numerous brand name pharmaceutical drugs, thereby making them fair game for generic pharmaceutical companies to manufacture at a more affordable level.
“The pharmaceutical industry will experience major patent expiries during 2013-2020, of which 2014 to 2017 are expected to be peak years, with the loss of patents for drugs whose sales were worth more than $76 billion during 2011,” a Marketreport.biz summary concluded. “By 2015, branded products with sales of up to $135 billion will go off-patent, giving generic pharmaceutical companies immense opportunities to capitalize on the market.”
Growth in the generic pharmaceutical sector is not only good for investors, it’s also good for patients and healthcare institutions. After all, these are the parties who are now able to source the medications they need at a reduced cost. In turn, this helps lessen the burden on private wallets and public purses, as North America’s population begins to move toward an older per capita demographic. By creating a healthy competitive environment for generic pharmaceutical companies to compete in, a wider selection of the same products are available to consumers.
Generic Pharmaceutical Jobs Growth
Analysts predict that 2016 will be a banner year for generic pharmaceutical companies, with predicted profits of the leading generic pharmaceutical companies topping $220 billion dollars. “U.S. generic growth will rise to $104.1 billion by 2016, due to the expiry of patents on major drugs, such as Lipitor and Zyprexa, increased pressure for generic use from Medicare drug plans, and the gradual emergence of the biosimilar market,” this according to Healthcare Packaging online.
Similar to the United States, Canada has started to implement policies around generic substitutions and reference pricing. “These policies are designed to ensure that drug plans pay only for the cheapest drug that works. For these policies to work, it is important to get generics onto provincial formularies promptly,” The Globe and Mail’s Andre Picard wrote in 2010, just before the Patent Cliff began taking effect.
Canada is a country after all that spends over $5 billion a year on generic drugs.
Students and those looking to build a career in the medical and pharmaceutical fields should be particularly aware of the Patent Cliff and the turning-of-the-tide effect this is having on employment prospects in the industry. In part as a result of this phenomena, the tide is turning and increasingly it will be generic pharmaceutical companies bringing attractive career opportunities to graduates.
In 2014, the generic share of retail prescriptions made up 67.1 percent of the Canadian prescription drug sales, that’s a 6.7 percent increase from the previous year. Few industries are reaping the sort of steady growth the generic pharmaceutical industry is now experiencing. This, paired with continued patent expirations and increased healthcare expenditures by governments, has made the pharmaceutical industry one of the most employable trades coming out of university.
Job Opportunities in Generic Pharmaceutical Companies
Looking at local prospects, there is one Canadian-based company in particular with a strong presence.
Apotex is Canada’s largest privately-owned pharmaceutical company, supplying generic medications to over 115 countries around the world. With over 10,000 employees worldwide and over 6,000 of them in Canada, these employees work in all kinds of areas, including research and development, manufacturing, sales and marketing, distribution and everything in-between. Considering the growing generic market, companies like Apotex are positioned to expand their workforce over the next ten years.
According to Apotex’s Truly Canadian website, the company plans to invest $2.1 billion over the next ten years in R&D and manufacturing. This means a need to find and retain a highly trained workforce and new graduates. All of this at a time when economic uncertainty in many other industries remains a concern for recent graduates who want attractive employment prospects and an opportunity to efficiently pay back their student loans.
In 2016, a year that began on a shaky footing as far as financial markets and employment prospects, it’s likely that finding attractive employment opportunities will remain a concern for recent graduates.
