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Prescription Drugs

Bob the Citronaut

GOL's Inner Circle
Gold Member
Aug 29, 2007
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Learned something interesting today. US patients foot the bill for R&D and then other countries get the drugs at half the price from big pharma since they already ripped us off for all the sunk costs. Another example of the US getting screwed by the rest of the world.
 
Learned something interesting today. US patients foot the bill for R&D and then other countries get the drugs at half the price from big pharma since they already ripped us off for all the sunk costs. Another example of the amazing US healthcare system.

FIFY
 
Learned something interesting today. US patients foot the bill for R&D and then other countries get the drugs at half the price from big pharma since they already ripped us off for all the sunk costs. Another example of the US getting screwed by the rest of the world.

Yep. It’s long past due that we demand these countries bear the brunt of the real cost or we enact trade restrictions. European free loading off American drug company innovation needs to end.
 
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Yep. It’s long past due that we demand these countries bear the brunt of the real cost or we enact trade restrictions. European free loading off American drug company innovation needs to end.

Honest question - are you in favor of isolationism? If things were as easy as you make them sound, don’t you think we’d do it?
 
Honest question - are you in favor of isolationism? If things were as easy as you make them sound, don’t you think we’d do it?

It’s not isolationism dude.

Here’s the scenario- American Drug Company X sinks untold millions or billions into research. Takes years and years to get something to market. Once done, the EU says “hey thanks, but in order to play in our market, we will pay you 30% of what your market price would be. Go recoup investment costs on the backs of Americans”

They deal in price fixing simply because our government has been too spineless to prevent it and drug companies have found it acceptable.

The new rules should be clear- EVERYONE pays the real market price for a duration of time or your country doesn’t access it.
 
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"Europe has much better healthcare. They get everything cheaper, we need to emulate their health systems."

Trump suggests Europe should pay the same as us for drugs so our costs go down like in Europe.

"OMG!!! Armageddon!!! Isolationism!!! What a racist monster!!! Trump hates Europeans!!!"
 
"Europe has much better healthcare. They get everything cheaper, we need to emulate their health systems."

Trump suggests Europe should pay the same as us for drugs so our costs go down like in Europe.

"OMG!!! Armageddon!!! Isolationism!!! What a racist monster!!! Trump hates Europeans!!!"

I never said anything about Trump.

I guess my point is, if it was easy as doing what you’re saying, don’t you think it would already be done?
 
I never said anything about Trump.

I guess my point is, if it was easy as doing what you’re saying, don’t you think it would already be done?

But you criticized his policy...

Nope. Globalism vs America First. We've been ignoring Americans since Nixon opened China, it's time we start putting ourselves before the rest of the world. They all certainly do.
 
But you criticized his policy...

Nope. Globalism vs America First. We've been ignoring Americans since Nixon opened China, it's time we start putting ourselves before the rest of the world. They all certainly do.

Is there something wrong with criticizing someone's policies? I didn't make a big deal out of it. People are allowed to think differently, yeah?

There obviously needs to be a balance. The world is important to us.
 
Is there something wrong with criticizing someone's policies? I didn't make a big deal out of it. People are allowed to think differently, yeah?

There obviously needs to be a balance. The world is important to us.

You said you didn't say anything about Trump. Stop moving the goal posts. You're second comment makes no sense when discussing the rest of the world being treated the same as US citizens.
 
Nothing funnier than a bunch of so called conservatives whining that the government doesn't do enough to protect them from mean old corporations.
 
It’s not isolationism dude.

Here’s the scenario- American Drug Company X sinks untold millions or billions into research. Takes years and years to get something to market. Once done, the EU says “hey thanks, but in order to play in our market, we will pay you 30% of what your market price would be. Go recoup investment costs on the backs of Americans”

They deal in price fixing simply because our government has been too spineless to prevent it and drug companies have found it acceptable.

The new rules should be clear- EVERYONE pays the real market price for a duration of time or your country doesn’t access it.
im not a big fan of gov getting involved but us citizens are getting screwed on this deal. it needs to be fixed.
 
im not a big fan of gov getting involved but us citizens are getting screwed on this deal. it needs to be fixed.

This is a case of demanding governments remove themselves, not get involved. The EU has essentially set up a barrier to entry (free trade!) that mandates they'll pay what they say for the drug, regardless of how much and how long it took to develop. They set a pay to play price, fix it, and then demand the drug company go recoup investments and turn a profit elsewhere.
 
This is a case of demanding governments remove themselves, not get involved. The EU has essentially set up a barrier to entry (free trade!) that mandates they'll pay what they say for the drug, regardless of how much and how long it took to develop. They set a pay to play price, fix it, and then demand the drug company go recoup investments and turn a profit elsewhere.
we cant directly control them. we can use our government to put pressure on them to change or even put up our own policies to level the playing field.
 
Learned something interesting today. US patients foot the bill for R&D and then other countries get the drugs at half the price from big pharma since they already ripped us off for all the sunk costs. Another example of the US getting screwed by the rest of the world.
[roll]
 
@chemmie I am disappointed the reply was not: "Why do you hate capitalism/free markets?"

Drug companies fleecing for years selling literal chemical poison with marijuana (specifically cannabis oil) illegal.
 
If America wasn't footing the bill for R&D then we wouldn't have the advancements we do, so it's hard to criticize the situation completely. It's much easier to criticize the waste in our system. For example, in long term health care facilities, a patient who gets a prescription under Medicare A but then goes back to private payer, the drugs that were administered but unused under Medicare have to be destroyed even if only 1/100th of the prescription have been used. The reverse is also true. My wife is an administrative nurse and is charged with running the disposal cart and says there are literally tens of thousands of dollars of drugs destroyed each week in her facility due to people transitioning back and forth between coverage. That should be an easy fix but our government would rather flush that money down the proverbial toilet.
 
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Everything's on the up & up with the drug industry

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If America wasn't footing the bill for R&D then we wouldn't have the advancements we do, so it's hard to criticize the situation completely. It's much easier to criticize the waste in our system. For example, in long term health care facilities, a patient who gets a prescription under Medicare A but then goes back to private payer, the drugs that were administered but unused under Medicare have to be destroyed even if only 1/100th of the prescription have been used. The reverse is also true. My wife is an administrative nurse and is charged with running the disposal cart and says there are literally tens of thousands of dollars of drugs destroyed each week in her facility due to people transitioning back and forth between coverage. That should be an easy fix but our government would rather flush that money down the proverbial toilet.

There would still be advancements. Europe isn't going to stop buying from American companies if the prices are leveled.
 
One thing I really like from Trump's blueprint is the requirement for drug companies to state their prices on any TV commercials. They might just think a little harder about what price they're going to set if they'll then be required to blast that out to the country on every TV spot they buy.
 
One thing I really like from Trump's blueprint is the requirement for drug companies to state their prices on any TV commercials. They might just think a little harder about what price they're going to set if they'll then be required to blast that out to the country on every TV spot they buy.

How do you do that though? Everyone pays something different based on coverage.

Some do mention a "Pay as little as..." but that's borderline deceiving because it's the lowest anyone would pay.

I take a medicine that with insurance is still $85 a month but there's a copay card which makes it free, which is wonderful.
 
How do you do that though? Everyone pays something different based on coverage.

Some do mention a "Pay as little as..." but that's borderline deceiving because it's the lowest anyone would pay.

I take a medicine that with insurance is still $85 a month but there's a copay card which makes it free, which is wonderful.

They can easily state what the wholesale price is to whatever tangled web of middle men then mark it up from there.

Which is actually good for visibility. If you see an ad saying a pill is $10 per pill, and yet your insurance is claiming the cost of that pill is $40 per, you finally get to see how much mark up is taking place at the middle man level where all of the blood sucking is done
 
They can easily state what the wholesale price is to whatever tangled web of middle men then mark it up from there.

Which is actually good for visibility. If you see an ad saying a pill is $10 per pill, and yet your insurance is claiming the cost of that pill is $40 per, you finally get to see how much mark up is taking place at the middle man level where all of the blood sucking is done

...and what does this accomplish? It's not that I'm opposed to it, I just don't get it? The ads are for the consumer - whatever price they pay is not what they're going to pay and there will be a zillion different price points based on whatever insurance you have.

When you advertise on TV you don't see the wholesale price. I'd venture to say, that ad would be deemed deceiving and cause confusion.

I think creating a database of actual pill prices that could be accessed by anyone would be a better route.
 
...and what does this accomplish? It's not that I'm opposed to it, I just don't get it? The ads are for the consumer - whatever price they pay is not what they're going to pay and there will be a zillion different price points based on whatever insurance you have.

When you advertise on TV you don't see the wholesale price. I'd venture to say, that ad would be deemed deceiving and cause confusion.

I think creating a database of actual pill prices that could be accessed by anyone would be a better route.

So do the same exact thing in spreadsheets instead of commercials? Why would the database be any different than Trump's idea which you said won't work?
 
...and what does this accomplish? It's not that I'm opposed to it, I just don't get it? The ads are for the consumer - whatever price they pay is not what they're going to pay and there will be a zillion different price points based on whatever insurance you have.

When you advertise on TV you don't see the wholesale price. I'd venture to say, that ad would be deemed deceiving and cause confusion.

I think creating a database of actual pill prices that could be accessed by anyone would be a better route.

So you think that more visibility for the consumer is a bad thing? The status quo is OK?

I’m not saying it will bring prices down over night but it’s a step in the right direction. The average person has NO IDEA how their drugs got to cost what they do, and the industry is near impossible to explain since it’s such a tangled mess of government, big pharma, middle men, and insurance companies.

Last year there was an uproar over a drug price that sky rocketed. CNBC had their CEO on and she could not even explain the distribution model that is used it how prices end up where they do

So yes, getting even an estimated wholesale price from the drug OEM would be a GREAT first step. At least then people have a sliver or more info and can start demanding some accountability once they have a better grasp of the real prices being paid to middle men
 
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So you think that more visibility for the consumer is a bad thing? The status quo is OK?

I’m not saying it will bring prices down over night but it’s a step in the right direction. The average person has NO IDEA how their drugs got to cost what they do, and the industry is near impossible to explain since it’s such a tangled mess of government, big pharma, middle men, and insurance companies.

Last year there was an uproar over a drug price that sky rocketed. CNBC had their CEO on and she could not even explain the distribution model that is used it how prices end up where they do

So yes, getting even an estimated wholesale price from the drug OEM would be a GREAT first step. At least then people have a sliver or more info and can start demanding some accountability once they have a better grasp of the real prices being paid to middle men

No. I don't think it's a bad thing at all. That's why I mentioned creating some sort of database that consumers can research. I'd venture to say that a large portion of people DO know that the insurance companies inflate the prices, it's been one of the hottest topics in politics for...well..quite awhile.

I think having this on commercials would confuse customers and honestly, cause more frustrations for pharmacists rather than the pharma companies themselves. Having worked in customer service and advertising, consumers don't generally think beyond what's happening in front of them in the moment. It's just a fact.

I have NO issue with wholesale prices being available to the consumer, I don't think putting that in a commercial will do much, if anything. You best believe if that database was put out to the pubic that it would be shared organically and create more of a connection to the consumer than a commercial would. A lot of people wouldn't even see the inflation of the cost because insurance would bring the cost down.

Just my viewpoint on it. I'm for more clarity, just in a different way.
 
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