TOKYO -- Japanese makers of generic drugs, the cheaper alternatives to name-brand pharmaceuticals, are learning that their relentless efforts to keep prices down come at a cost -- their reliance on chemical ingredients, or drug precursors, from China is opening them up to supply disruption.
"Once stocks ran out, we switched to a different antibiotic, but there is concern about possible side effects," says one doctor at a university hospital in Japan. Nichi-Iko Pharmaceutical, a generics manufacturer, announced in February that it could no longer supply the antibiotic cefazolin, sparking a crisis in the country's hospitals.
