tricor vs lipitor

Is there any reason to prescribe tricor versus lipitor in an otherwise healthy person with high cholesterol? Is it a cost issue if a person is on Medicare? thank you

[Cleveland Clinic]

The two are different classes of medications and address different elevations in lipids, namely elevated cholesterol and elevated triglycerides. We use lipitor for elevated LDL and to a lesser extent low HDL. We use fenofibrate or gemfibrozil for elevated triglycerides. If both are present, then we prescribe Lipitor or another medication in its class to lower the LDL and then if the triglycerides are still elevated add fenofibrate.