Meds cost $17K per week?

[Flubber]

Originally posted by notyoueither


The problem could be that there are some socialised countries and some high-end insurance plans, and some very wealthy individuals...

So that there is a market that can afford to pay for a med for any condition. If only ten people suffer from the condition who are covered by 'any price coverage', then develop the drug and recoup the costs and make a profit off of the ten payers for those ten people.

There should be considerably more than ten people in Canada with this condition. Say there are 50. That's 40 million a year for meds for those 50 people. That's a lot of R&D money.

I agree with you. Junior should get his meds. I am questioning how they are priced.

Then we are in full agreement. I agree that it seems like a heck of a lot of money for a drug treatment but for all I know they need to filter it through 6 different screens made of 8 ozs of solid gold each .

Pay only a reasonable price for the drug but don't deny it to the kid on economic grounds ...... In fairness I am not sure why it is being denied. It may be red tape where the drug has not yet been approved ( for reasons unrelated to cost)

[Flubber]

Originally posted by DanS


Make sure to include the costs for all the unsuccessful drug candidates into the costs for this successful drug candidate.

but more of that would be built in to the price of drugs taken by millions of people.

Also on profitability-- Isn't it better for the drug company to get some money ( in excess of production costs) rather than set a price so high that your potential customer dies-- Or do we think that they just assume that the system sill pay regardless of price

[Lancer]

Imagine having an illness that would kill you if you didn't come up with $17,000 a week...

[notyoueither]

Imagine people wanting to charge $17K per week to save a life...

[Lancer]

Yeah, like I said. Imagine if it was you. Sitting there in your chair, think how you'll come up with the first weeks 17Gs. Or, think about your funeral. Who you going to invite?

[notyoueither]

Only those who would like to dance.

[Lancer]

I think I'd go climbing. Head up some mountain and see how far I got. The wife wouldn't like that much though. I guess I'd just wait it out here. Let the wife invite who she wants...

[notyoueither]

I am on a timed delay in getting your point.

Yes, it sucks that these things are priced out the way they are.

If polio or malaria cropped up now, I'm afraid the third world needn't apply for the meds, since there's no way in hell they could ever afford to pay for them.

[notyoueither]

It would cost $800 million (usd) and take 15 years to get quinine to market.

Only rich people, or those covered by socialised medicine would get a shot at it.

So, tourists to the tropics would get treatment when they came home with malaria, but the poor suckers who live near the swamps could just die.

Something has gone horribly wrong.

[KrazyHorse]

Originally posted by DanS
This is a good article. If all the good things about Canada's health system that I hear from KrazyHorse are true, then you Canucks will mark this up to fulfilling the requirements for a civilized country and pay the bill happily.

We are paying the bill. There's no way the politicians will let this kid die because of money. Their heads would be on pikes outside the city gates.

Theoretically, drug costs are not covered under medicare, but as I said...

Now, we might just "persuade" the drug company into selling the stuff to us cheaper. Expecially if it's a big one that sells us other drugs. The big, unspoken fact in our "negotiations" with the pharmacorps is that we can make unlicensed drugs at any point if we should choose to break their patents, and there's not a damn thing they can do about it...

[KrazyHorse]

I like the catfight between Dosanjh and Klein over whose turn it is to pick up the tab...

[notyoueither]

Originally posted by KrazyHorse
We are paying the bill. There's no way the politicians will let this kid die because of money. Their heads would be on pikes outside the city gates.

Theoretically, drug costs are not covered under medicare, but as I said...

Maybe not, but what about Indian and Northern Affairs?

The fed is on the hook for meds for status citizens.

Now, we might just "persuade" the drug company into selling the stuff to us cheaper. Expecially if it's a big one that sells us other drugs. The big, unspoken fact in our "negotiations" with the pharmacorps is that we can make unlicensed drugs at any point if we should choose to break their patents, and there's not a damn thing they can do about it...

I don't think that is entirely true. WTO and NAFTA would have something to say on the issue.

[KrazyHorse]

Originally posted by notyoueither


Maybe not, but what about Indian and Northern Affairs?

The fed is on the hook for meds for status citizens.



I don't think that is entirely true. WTO and NAFTA would have something to say on the issue.

We have exemptions on drugs and health care (as do other signatories) IIRC

Otherwise we'd already be on the hook.

Brazil copies drugs all the time, and the WTO hasn't said word one about it yet.

[DanS]

Now, we might just "persuade" the drug company into selling the stuff to us cheaper. Expecially if it's a big one that sells us other drugs. The big, unspoken fact in our "negotiations" with the pharmacorps is that we can make unlicensed drugs at any point if we should choose to break their patents, and there's not a damn thing they can do about it...

I wouldn't put it past you lot, but you must know that this would just discourage drug companies from researching, developing, and commercializing expensive drugs with limited markets. People will die in the future because of this choice that you make now.

[:) Smiley]

The system would be seriously broken if the government or someone doesn't pay for the treatment- the money has already been spent to do the R&D, so if the results of that research aren't getting used, it'd be a huge waste.