All drugs, both brand-name and generics, are reviewed and authorized for sale by Health Canada before they are available for prescription. When a generic drug is approved, Health Canada continues to monitor its safety, effectiveness, and quality. Generic medicines are required to work the same way in the body as the original brand-name drug.

Generic medicines have the same active ingredient as the brand-name and must have the same amount of active ingredient in the prescription. Non-medicinal ingredients, like fillers and preservatives, may be different from the brand-name product, but they are also regulated and reviewed by Health Canada. To receive a license to manufacture and sell drugs in Canada, both brand-name and generic drug companies must follow the same Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) guidelines, which ensure consistent production and quality standards.

CGPA member companies manufacture and market hundreds of different types of high-quality, cost-saving prescription medicines including solid oral drugs in the form of pills and tablets, non-solid products such as injectables and prescription creams and ointments.