Final answer:
"Formulary meds" refers to a list of medications approved by a patient's insurance company, which includes both generic and brand-name drugs. The inclusion of generics helps manage healthcare costs due to their affordability relative to brand-name drugs.
Step-by-step explanation:
"Formulary meds" refers to a list of drugs approved by the patient's insurance company. This list includes various medications that are covered under a patient's health plan and typically consists of both generic drugs and brand-name drugs. Generic drugs are the chemical equivalents of brand-name drugs whose patents have expired.
These generic alternatives are crucial for keeping healthcare costs down and are often preferred by insurance companies for their formularies. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires that a generic drug be therapeutically equivalent to the brand-name counterpart through an Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA). The process of drug approval, whether generic or new, involves stringent safety and efficacy regulations by the FDA to ensure patient protection.