 [ Symptoms ] do i have to enroll in health insurance now if i currently have commonwealth care network health plan  my son has masshealthfamily assistants network health plan my husband has medicaid with united healthcare he is disabled [ Disease ] most helpful answer generic medications contain the same active ingredients as their brand name counterparts they may contain different binders and inactive ingredients in the u s generic drugs are regulated by the food and drug administration fda and are required to meet the same quality standards as brand name drugs research has shown that generic drugs work just as well as brand name drugs that said there are always slight variations in purity and strength between batches of mass produced medications this is true of all drugs that are mass produced both name brand and generic the fda regulates how much variation is allowed and it is not very much if you have recently switched from a brand name medication to a generic version and feel it is not working as effectively you should talk to your health care provider about it he or she can help you determine the best course of treatment best wishes to you