LSAT 105 | Section 1 | Logical Reasoning: Q7

LR Question 7 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: Generic drugs contain exactly the same active ingredients …

QUESTION TYPE: Strengthen

CONCLUSION: Generic drugs are just as effective as brand-name counterparts but cost less.

REASONING: Generic and brand-name drugs contain the exact same active ingredients, and generic brands are much cheaper to manufacture and sell.

ANALYSIS: There’s a shift in concept here between the premise and conclusion. From evidence based on containing the same ingredients, the argument concludes they’re equally effective.

But two things can have the same ingredients and still differ in efficacy based on a number of other factors. To strengthen this argument, we need to eliminate the idea that generic drugs could be less effective for other reasons.

And as a side note, the cost factor is largely irrelevant to the crux of this argument.

___________

1. We already know they use the same active ingredients so we can expect that the cost of their overall ingredients will be comparable. But this doesn’t affect the claim that generic is just as effective as brand-name.
2. CORRECT. This eliminates the idea that generic drugs may be less effective because they’re more likely to be defective, which strengthens the argument.
3. Their availability in pharmacies has no effect on the comparative efficacy.
4. This might explain why brand-name costs more, but it doesn’t strengthen the claim that generics are equally effective.
5. Same as D. This explains something out of scope (why doctors prescribe brand-name more).