Amazing how much lifesaving meds are overpriced in the US

[rhwestfall]

As well as plenty of Americans going to other countries for procedures. Some of those do backfire, some quack treatments, and the tourists who made the news recently.

You are going to muddy the waters with a comparison to voluntary cosmetic surgery? Why not go all in with back alley abortions....

 

[Angelo Farina]

—So few people who wonder why drug prices are lower in other places ever wonder why all those miracle drugs are not developed in those other places.

Here in Europe we have a lot of pharmaceutical companies based in Switzerland, Germany, Italy, France, etc.
They have excellent research labs and factories here.
We also have a lot of excellent public universities and state-owned research centers, operating with public money. The ERC subsidizes biomedical research with billions each year.
A lot of new drugs are discovered by our researchers, rivalling or exceeding the results of biomedical research performed in US.
European pharma companies often produce drugs similar or identical to the US-made drugs.
And despite the high cost of research, here drugs cost 1/20 of US.
The only explanation is that in US it is possible to over-price drugs and medical treatments because everyone involved has economical benefits from this overpricing.

 

[Joneill]

No , rich people are paying a lot of taxes for allowing low-income people like me to have free public health.
People not used to highly progressive taxation systems do not really understand how fair is our system.

The US has a progressive tax system. The top 10% pay over 2/3rds of all federal income taxes collected. In 2020, the top 1 percent of earners (with incomes over $548,336) paid nearly 42 percent of all federal income taxes. Somewhere near 50% of the population pay nothing in federal income taxes.

Regardless, unless you are telling me you pay nothing in taxes, your heathcare is not really free… and, if you don’t pay taxes, it’s only free to you - someone else is paying your way.

 

[Joneill]

Here in Europe we have a lot of pharmaceutical companies based in Switzerland, Germany, Italy, France, etc.
They have research labs and factories here. They often produce drugs similar or identical to the US-made drugs.
And despite the high cost of research, here drugs cost 1/20 of US.
The only explanation is that in US it is possible to over-price drugs and medical treatments because everyone involved has economical benefits from this overpricing.

But those same European drug companies charge more for their drugs in the US than in Europe.

There are a number of reasons (lawyers/ lawsuits in US a big one, I’m sure), but, unfortunately for us, the US market allows them the recoup their investments and make the profits needed to do further research on new drugs with our higher prices.

In my opinion, the US pricing is effectively subsidizing lower prices in the rest of the world. I wonder how many drugs these European drug companies would bring to market and at what price if the US forced the same prices as paid in Europe.

I’m not saying it’s right and, for sure, things like the Epipen price increases are pure money grabs - but it’s a far more complicated issue than many here seem to want to make it out to be.

 

[noserider]

But those same European drug companies charge more for their drugs in the US than in Europe.

There are a number of reasons (lawyers/ lawsuits in US a big one, I’m sure), but, unfortunately for us, the US market allows them the recoup their investments and make the profits needed to do further research on new drugs with our higher prices.

In my opinion, the US pricing is effectively subsidizing lower prices in the rest of the world. I wonder how many drugs these European drug companies would bring to market and at what price if the US forced the same prices as paid in Europe.

I’m not saying it’s right and, for sure, things like the Epipen price increases are pure money grabs - but it’s a far more complicated issue than many here seem to want to make it out to be.

I would say the protectionist policies employed by the pharmacy companies and their lobbyists stop a free and competitive market operating in the states which result in customers paying more

 

[Angelo Farina]

The US has a progressive tax system. The top 10% pay over 2/3rds of all federal income taxes collected. In 2020, the top 1 percent of earners (with incomes over $548,336) paid nearly 42 percent of all federal income taxes. Somewhere near 50% of the population pay nothing in federal income taxes.

Regardless, unless you are telling me you pay nothing in taxes, your heathcare is not really free… and, if you don’t pay taxes, it’s only free to you - someone else is paying your way.

Sure, someone else, very rich, is paying for the largest part of our public healthcare system. I contribute with much less.
And this is FAIR.
Everyone should contribute to sustain such a good system, of course proportionally to his wealth, ensuring that who is hit by some disease does not suffers economically for this, and that everyone receives the better therapy available independently of being rich or poor.

 

[Angelo Farina]

But those same European drug companies charge more for their drugs in the US than in Europe.

There are a number of reasons (lawyers/ lawsuits in US a big one, I’m sure), but, unfortunately for us, the US market allows them the recoup their investments and make the profits needed to do further research on new drugs with our higher prices.

In my opinion, the US pricing is effectively subsidizing lower prices in the rest of the world. I wonder how many drugs these European drug companies would bring to market and at what price if the US forced the same prices as paid in Europe.

That is true only for the large multinational "big pharma" companies, such as Bayer, Pfizer, Glaxo.
We have plenty of high-technology small companies which only target the local market, and they still are going very well, despite selling 100% of their production here.
Of course the US market is much more profitable, thanks to the anomalous conditions which allow severe overpricing.
So, when possible, our local pharma companies attempt to penetrate the protected US market.
Here for example you see the attempt of the local company based here in Parma, Italy to penetrate the US market. Have you ever heard of it?

https://www.chiesiusa.com/

 

[Scraps]

Still not getting your point. You suggested that it is right that drugs cost man, many times more in America than in other countries because they are made here. Please explain why.

I did not suggest it’s right. I suggested that there are reasons more complex than simply greed.

Each country has its own laws, its own mechanisms for paying for healthcare and its own citizens’ ability to pay out of pocket costs.

We should expect pharmaceutical companies to charge what each market will bear, and we should expect that they have a handle on how the total volume and revenue add up for their total profitability. They can sell in many places at prices below the fully allocated cost of the drugs as long as they can collect those costs either over a longer product life cycle or from other markets.

A country with a single payer system has a lot of power in negotiating prices, and companies may have to settle for margins there that they couldn’t live with across the board. Of course, countries that wield their negotiating power with a heavy hand create an environment inhospitable to the kind of investment needed to support R&D.

In a country like the US, where a lot of people pay (and are able to pay) high out-of-pocket costs and where a wide variety of public and private insurance plans offer different levels of coverage and wield varying degrees of negotiating leverage, you can expect out-of-pocket costs to vary widely.

 

[DandyDon]

Sorry to hear you had to go to these measures but most of us have been forced to “shop” for medications to offset our medication expenses.

Hey, bookmark LifeRx Pharmacy: A Certified Canada Online Pharmacy and check your costly meds there.

Rich people are paying a lot of taxes for allowing low-income people like me to have free public health.

Yeah, we're supposed to have a progressive tax system in the US, but it's been greatly undermined by current laws.

Of course the US market is much more profitable, thanks to the anomalous conditions which allow severe overpricing.

Bingo!

Game Changer. I owe you big time.

Glad it helped. What did you find?

 

[kinoons]

The US market also allows for some individuals to be truly disruptive. A physician approached Cuban about a project to reduce the cost of pharmaceuticals. Cuban funded the whole project. Now you have cost plus drugs. (I have no association to the company)

Mission of Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drugs | Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drugs Company

Every American should have access to safe, affordable medicines at the lowest possible price. Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company.

costplusdrugs.com

We started Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company because every American should have access to safe, affordable medicines. If you don’t have insurance or have a high deductible plan, you know that even the most basic medications can cost a fortune. Many people are spending crazy amounts of money each month just to stay healthy. No American should have to suffer or worse - because they can’t afford basic prescription medications.

Basically they produce their own generic drugs and sell them at cost of production and management via cash pay. Anyone can mail order from them. If they are less expensive that your current situation between a local pharmacy and your insurance take a look.