Is benicar 20mg and diovan 80mg (generic valsartan) the same? May doctor says that because of the way they are formulated that it will take 80mg of valsartan to replace the benicar 20mg that my ins. company no longer covers. The 80mg scared me; seemed like a big jump. Is there another BP RX that would do the same without shortness of breath? I guess I just asked 2 questions didn't I?