Emend Generic: When Will Generic Aprepitant Be Available?
This page is aggregated from FDA records, court filings and company announcements. Coded and designed by Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS
Updated October 9, 2026 How we build our data
Emend Generic at a Glance
Four quick answers from FDA records and our estimate.
- When is the first generic expected? TBD no date yet What opens the door is not settled yet
- Has the FDA approved a generic? Not yet None in the FDA’s records yet
- When does the last patent end? September 2027 Its only patent listed with the FDA
- Can you buy a generic today? Not yet No company lists one for sale
There is no expected month yet for generic aprepitant. None is for sale yet.
Will the generic cost less?
Usually, but no company is recorded as having applied to make one yet, and a single company usually brings only a modest drop. See the price pattern
What should I do now?
Keep taking Emend as prescribed. When a generic arrives, your pharmacy may switch you to it automatically, and it may look different. What a generic means for you
Our month is only an estimate based on available information, so we never name a day.
Emend by the Numbers
- Reason
- Awaiting FDA approvalThe patents are not the problem. A generic still needs FDA sign-off, and that is when it is expected.
- How sure
- Not rated Too early to rate.
- Price competition
- None filed yet No filers on record
- Brand sales
- Sales not reported
- FDA approved 2003 March 2003 FDA Orange Book
- Patents listed 1 last runs to September 2027 FDA Orange Book
- Pharmacies pay $327.38 each NADAC, October 2026
- Medicare Part D spent $168.6K in 2025, for 20 people CMS Part D Spending by Drug
- Medicaid prescriptions 3,269 in the last four reported quarters, $945K CMS Medicaid drug utilization, to Q1 2026
Emend’s Road to a Generic
Emend has had the market to itself since the FDA approved it in March 2003 (Merck Sharp And Dohme LLC). Its one listed patent runs to September 2027. Generic companies have challenged its patents with the FDA since November 2008.
The patents are not the problem. A generic still needs FDA sign-off, and that is when it is expected.
Each bar runs from the brand’s approval to the day that protection ends. The green band is our projection for the first generic: a month, never a day, because legal dates move and a generic reaches shelves days to weeks after it is allowed. Sources: FDA Orange Book; the expected month from court records and company announcements.
Emend Patents and FDA Protections
Every patent and exclusivity the FDA Orange Book lists for Emend’s own applications. A protection running past the expected month does not mean the date is wrong: a settlement or a court ruling can let a generic in before a patent ends, and a patent on one formulation or use does not block every generic.
| Patent | What it covers | Protects until | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8,258,132 | The product’s formulation; a way of using it (U-901, U-1743, U-1916) | September 2027 | Active |
Source: FDA Orange Book, application 021549, 207865, 022023. Patent numbers open the patent on Google Patents.
Patent Challenges to Emend
The first patent challenge to Emend reached the FDA in November 2008, from one company on that first day. The FDA’s list has 4 entries for Emend, by form and strength. A first challenger began selling its generic in December 2016.
What Is a Patent Challenge?
A generic company that wants to sell its version before Emend’s patents run out can tell the FDA that a patent is invalid, or that its version does not infringe it. The FDA calls this a “Paragraph IV certification.” The brand company usually sues, and the FDA then generally cannot approve that generic for up to 30 months while the case runs. To reward going first, the companies that challenge first can get a 180-day head start: the FDA cannot approve the generics that came after them until it ends.
| Product | First challenged | Companies that day | 180-day head start | First challenger’s generic | Challenged patents run to | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Approved | On sale | |||||
| Capsule, 40 mg, 80 mg and 125 mg | November 2008 | 1 company | Decision deferred decided February 2020 | September 2012 | December 2016 | April 2015 |
| Injection, 115 mg/vial | January 2012 | 1 company | Head start no longer applies decided March 2020 | September 2019 | Not yet | February 2015 |
| Injection, 150 mg/vial | January 2012 | 2 companies | Head start no longer applies decided March 2020 | Not yet | Not yet | March 2019 |
| For oral suspension, 125 mg/Kit | November 2016 | 1 company | Head start no longer applies decided February 2020 | Not yet | Not yet | September 2027 |
Source: the FDA’s Paragraph IV Patent Certifications list, as of September 2026. The FDA began posting the 180-day decisions and the first challenger’s approval and first sale in June 2019: an older entry it has not updated since reads “Not posted”, and “Not yet” means the list records no such event. “Companies that day” is the FDA’s count of challenges that arrived on the first day.
Who Is Lined Up to Make Generic Aprepitant
Three steps stand between a brand and a generic you can buy: a company applies to the FDA, the FDA approves it, and the company starts selling it.
Applied to the FDA
No company is recorded as having applied to the FDA to make a generic Emend yet.
Generic companies have challenged Emend’s patents with the FDA since November 2008: see the patent challenges.
Approved by the FDA
Not yet. The FDA has not approved a generic aprepitant. Final approval often comes close to the day a generic can be sold.
For Sale in Pharmacies
Not yet. No company lists a generic aprepitant for sale with the FDA.
Sources: how many companies have applied, from court records and company announcements; approved generics from the FDA Orange Book; tentative approvals from Drugs@FDA; what is for sale from the FDA NDC Directory. The FDA does not disclose an application before it approves it (21 CFR 314.430).
Emend Price: What Pharmacies Pay and What Generics Usually Do
What Pharmacies Pay for Emend 125 mg powder packet
$327.38 each in October 2026.
Hover over or tap anywhere on the chart to see that month’s price.
- Emend 80 mg capsule $208.98 per capsule
- Emend 125 mg powder packet $327.38 each
See the numbers
| Month | Pharmacies paid each |
|---|---|
| October 2026 | $327.38 |
| September 2026 | $327.38 |
| August 2026 | $327.38 |
| July 2026 | $327.90 |
| June 2026 | $327.90 |
| May 2026 | $327.90 |
| April 2026 | $326.01 |
| March 2026 | $326.01 |
| February 2026 | $326.01 |
| January 2026 | $326.01 |
NADAC: the national average price retail pharmacies pay to buy the medicine (CMS survey, updated weekly), the last price of each month for one package. It is not what you pay: that depends on your insurance or discount card.
What a Generic Could Cost
How we estimate it. We start from what pharmacies pay for Emend today: $327.38 each for Emend 125 mg powder packet in October 2026, from the national NADAC survey. Then we apply the FDA’s finding of how far that price usually falls as generic companies join: about 31% with one company, 44% with two, 73% with four and over 95% with six or more (the typical drop for every drug whose first generic came out from 2015 to 2017).
Dollar figures apply FDA’s median drops to the $327.38 pharmacies pay each today. An estimate from the pattern, not a price quote: what you pay depends on your insurance or discount card.
Median prices pharmacies paid for the generic (invoice prices), compared with the brand’s price before generic entry, from FDA’s 2019 analysis “Generic Competition and Drug Prices”. At the manufacturer’s price FDA found steeper drops (about 39%, 54%, 79% and over 95%), the figures quoted elsewhere on this tracker. A typical pattern, not a price quote for this medicine.
What Medicare and Medicaid Spend on Emend
Big public spending is part of why generic makers line up for a medicine, and why its first generic matters beyond the pharmacy counter. Figures are before manufacturer rebates, which are confidential.
Medicare Part D Spending
What Medicare drug plans spent on Emend, before manufacturer rebates.
- $168.6K
- 2025, the whole year
For 20 people, about $2,675 per prescription fill
See the numbers
| Period | Spending | People | Per fill |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $168,554 | 20 | $2,675.45 |
Source: CMS Medicare Part D Spending by Drug, matched by the brand name Emend only, so no generic is counted in it. What CMS says it is used for: Aprepitant is used with other medications to help prevent nausea and vomiting caused by cancer drug treatment (chemotherapy). Aprepitant works by blocking one of the body's natural substances (substance P/neurokinin 1) that causes vomiting.
Medicaid Prescriptions by Quarter
3,269 prescriptions in the four quarters to Q1 2026, $945K paid.
See the numbers
| Quarter | Prescriptions | Medicaid paid |
|---|---|---|
| Q1 2026 | 477 | $186,553 |
| Q4 2025 | 691 | $168,764 |
| Q3 2025 | 1,023 | $257,783 |
| Q2 2025 | 1,078 | $331,895 |
| Q1 2025 | 1,540 | $1,047,669 |
Source: CMS Medicaid State Drug Utilization Data, over Emend’s own package codes.
Emend Strengths and Forms
| Strength | Form | How it is taken | Approved | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 125MG | Capsule | Oral | March 2003 | Prescription reference product |
| 80MG | Capsule | Oral | March 2003 | Prescription reference product |
| EQ 150MG BASE/VIAL | Powder | Intravenous | November 2010 | Prescription reference product |
| 125MG/KIT | For suspension | Oral | December 2015 | Prescription reference product |
| 40MG **Federal Register determination that product was not discontinued or withdrawn for safety or effectiveness reasons** | Capsule | Oral | June 2006 | Discontinued reference product |
| EQ 115MG BASE/VIAL **Federal Register determination that product was not discontinued or withdrawn for safety or effectiveness reasons** | Powder | Intravenous | January 2008 | Discontinued reference product |
Source: FDA Orange Book, Merck Sharp And Dohme LLC. Listed for sale today by Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC and Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp. (FDA NDC Directory).
Emend NDC Codes and Packages
Each Emend package sold today has its own NDC, the product number printed on the box and on the pharmacy label. Open one to see that package’s details, what pharmacies pay for it and its patent timeline.
| NDC | Product | Package | Company |
|---|---|---|---|
| 00006-3066-03 | APREPITANT 125 mg/1 powder, for suspension | pouch of 1 powder | Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC |
| 00006-3066-03 | APREPITANT 125 mg/1 powder, for suspension | pouch of 1 powder | Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC |
| 00006-0461-02 | APREPITANT 80 mg/1 capsule | dose pack of 2 capsules | Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC |
| 00006-0461-02 | APREPITANT 80 mg/1 capsule | dose pack of 2 capsules | Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC |
| 00006-0461-12 | APREPITANT 80 mg/1 capsule | dose pack of 2 capsules | Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC |
| 00006-0461-12 | APREPITANT 80 mg/1 capsule | dose pack of 2 capsules | Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC |
| 00006-3061-00 | FOSAPREPITANT DIMEGLUMINE 150 mg/5mL injection, powder, lyophilized, for solution | vial of 5 mL | Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC |
| 00006-3061-00 | FOSAPREPITANT DIMEGLUMINE 150 mg/5mL injection, powder, lyophilized, for solution | vial of 5 mL | Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC |
Show the other 4 Emend packages
| NDC | Product | Package | Company |
|---|---|---|---|
| 00006-3862-03 | kit | 1 KIT in 1 DOSE PACK * 1 CAPSULE in 1 CAPSULE * 1 CAPSULE in 1 CAPSULE | Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC |
| 00006-3862-03 | kit | 1 KIT in 1 DOSE PACK * 1 CAPSULE in 1 CAPSULE * 1 CAPSULE in 1 CAPSULE | Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC |
| 00006-3862-13 | kit | 1 KIT in 1 DOSE PACK * 1 CAPSULE in 1 CAPSULE * 1 CAPSULE in 1 CAPSULE | Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC |
| 00006-3862-13 | kit | 1 KIT in 1 DOSE PACK * 1 CAPSULE in 1 CAPSULE * 1 CAPSULE in 1 CAPSULE | Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC |
Source: the FDA NDC Directory, current listings only. Only packages sold under Emend’s own FDA approval (NDA 21549, NDA 207865, NDA 22023) are listed, never a generic. Some codes belong to companies that repackage Emend: it is the same medicine in a different package.
What a Generic Emend Means for You
Nothing Changes Until It Is in Pharmacies
Until a generic is actually for sale, keep filling Emend as usual. When one arrives, there is nothing you need to sign up for.
Your Pharmacy May Switch You Automatically
Every state lets pharmacists fill a brand-name prescription with an FDA-approved generic rated as equivalent to it, and about 19 states require them to, unless your prescriber writes “dispense as written” or “brand medically necessary” on the prescription. Some states ask the pharmacist to tell you, or to get your OK first. A study of every state’s law has the details.
It Will Probably Look Different
US trademark law does not let a generic look exactly like the brand, so the color, shape or markings usually change. The active ingredient, strength and form are the same. An “authorized generic,” made by or for the brand’s own company, can look identical. The FDA explains.
Your Insurance May Change Too
Once a lower-cost version is available, many insurance plans charge more for the brand, or stop covering it. Your plan’s drug list (formulary) says how.
Until a generic is on US pharmacy shelves, be careful with websites that offer “generic Emend”. The FDA warns that unlicensed online pharmacies sell counterfeit and unapproved medicines; its BeSafeRx page shows how to check a pharmacy.
Questions people ask about Emend
Is there a generic for Emend right now?
No. As of October 9, 2026 no generic aprepitant is listed for sale in the FDA NDC Directory.
When will Emend go generic?
There is no expected month yet. The patents are not the problem. A generic still needs FDA sign-off, and that is when it is expected.
Will generic aprepitant be the same as Emend?
Yes in the ways that matter: the same active ingredient, strength and form, with proof that it reaches your blood the same way. Inactive ingredients can differ, which is why some people notice a different look or taste.
How much will the generic cost?
Nobody can say for sure before launch. No company is recorded as having applied to the FDA to make one yet, and a single company usually brings only a modest drop.
Has the FDA approved a generic Emend?
Not yet. The FDA Orange Book lists no approved generic version of Emend.
When does the Emend patent expire?
One patent is listed for Emend in the FDA Orange Book; it runs to September 2027. A patent date is not the launch date: settlements and court rulings often bring a generic earlier, and FDA approval or a company’s own plans can make it later. The expected window on this page (a date that is not known yet) weighs all of that.
Has anyone challenged the Emend patents?
Yes. The first patent challenge to Emend reached the FDA in November 2008, from one company on that first day. A first challenger began selling its generic in December 2016. A patent challenge (a “Paragraph IV certification”) is a generic company telling the FDA that a patent listed for the brand is invalid or will not be infringed by its version. The first companies to file one can earn a 180-day head start, during which the FDA cannot approve the generics that filed after them.
How much does Emend cost now?
Pharmacies paid about $327.38 each for Emend 125 mg powder packet in October 2026, by the national survey of what pharmacies pay (NADAC). That is the pharmacy’s cost, not your price: what you pay depends on your insurance or discount card.
Changes to This Projection
- First generic expected a date that is not known yet on this month’s schedule. A line is added here whenever a monthly update moves the month, the reason or how sure it is.
Every change to the expected month is logged here with the month we saw it.
Also Going Generic
- MirenaLevonorgestrelSeptember 2029
- GrafapexTreosulfanJanuary 2032
- ZolymbusBimatoprostJune 2036
- Radicava ORSEdaravone2037 to 2038
- Tuzistra XRChlorpheniramine Polistirex and Codeine PolistirexTBD no date yet
- CleviprexClevidipineTBD no date yet
About Emend
- Generic name aprepitant
- How it is taken By mouth
- Company Merck Sharp And Dohme LLC
- Patent challenges Since November 2008 (FDA)
- More drugs Brand-name drugs starting with E
- Have a question? A pharmacist answers, free. Ask about Emend
Sources. The expected month: FDA Paragraph IV Patent Certifications list, federal court records, company announcements and securities filings (settlement dates, launch plans, sales). The record on this page: FDA Orange Book, Drugs@FDA (tentative approvals), FDA NDC Directory, FDA Paragraph IV Patent Certifications list, NADAC (CMS), CMS Medicare Part D Spending by Drug, Medicaid State Drug Utilization Data, FDA, Generic Competition and Drug Prices (2019). Updated October 9, 2026. Information, not medical advice.