My health insurance was erroneously canceled as I was sitting in the actual chair waiting to get my first infusion of the monoclonal antibody treatments that will help prevent my cancer from returning... so, even though I knew it was a mistake, I had to agree to pay for the dose of medication I got that day.
I almost fainted when I saw the bill.
That one day's dose of two medications cost $73,000.
Can you provide more detail? I don't think it's that simple. I work in this industry and I see the company paying for clinical trials. In fact, the hospitals we work with charge a 30-40% overhead charge on the final cost, which no one knows what that goes to.
I think it's quite plausible that government sponsored research on the biological target, or on a basic research technique, but as that is quite upstream from the finished product, assuming there is one, it doesn't seem accurate to state the drug is paid for by taxpayers.
They also completely ignore that drugs are developed and manufactured outside the US. In the 90s, Europe spent the most on pharmaceutical R&D. From the 2000s, the US spent the most of any single region. China has been growing steadily and as of 2020 they are spending the most on R&D. In 2000, a bit less than half of R&D expenditures were in the US, and the gap has been widening. As of 2020, it's only about a third.
Dear FSM, the pharmaceutical R&D (shakes head until eyeballs lose mooring) . . . Inventing in their world is something called patent evergreening. Example: Oracea is an acne med that is only a doxycycline pill. Doxycycline was invented in the goddam sixties. So Galderma keeps popping out new patents on it that are so lame one of the marketing VPs is listed as inventor. And a pill worth maybe 30cents can now be bought for $36. And most “new” drugs are actually developed by small research firms that are then bought by big pharma. I need a trigger warning for articles like this.
something I have never quite gotten - why did "we paid for this with our tax dollars"? pembrolizumab was actually out of an industry lab and did not come from a university or NCI. What am I missing?
The drug companies are consistently profitable, year after year, doesn't matter what the rest of the stock market is doing. They have completely gamed the system.
"Some people claim that the American medical system isn’t very good because American life expectancy isn’t top tier. But as we know, Americans aren’t always models of health, moderation and safety."
This would almost approach the level of an argument that's worth addressing, if not for the fact that they make no attempt to quantify to what extent (if any) Americans are worse at these things than other people.
I am uninsured. Now that both of my parents have passed if I get some expensive illness I will forgo treatment because I'm not going to ring up all that debt.
My health insurance was erroneously canceled as I was sitting in the actual chair waiting to get my first infusion of the monoclonal antibody treatments that will help prevent my cancer from returning... so, even though I knew it was a mistake, I had to agree to pay for the dose of medication I got that day.
I almost fainted when I saw the bill.
That one day's dose of two medications cost $73,000.
Can you provide more detail? I don't think it's that simple. I work in this industry and I see the company paying for clinical trials. In fact, the hospitals we work with charge a 30-40% overhead charge on the final cost, which no one knows what that goes to.
I think it's quite plausible that government sponsored research on the biological target, or on a basic research technique, but as that is quite upstream from the finished product, assuming there is one, it doesn't seem accurate to state the drug is paid for by taxpayers.
They also completely ignore that drugs are developed and manufactured outside the US. In the 90s, Europe spent the most on pharmaceutical R&D. From the 2000s, the US spent the most of any single region. China has been growing steadily and as of 2020 they are spending the most on R&D. In 2000, a bit less than half of R&D expenditures were in the US, and the gap has been widening. As of 2020, it's only about a third.
Dear FSM, the pharmaceutical R&D (shakes head until eyeballs lose mooring) . . . Inventing in their world is something called patent evergreening. Example: Oracea is an acne med that is only a doxycycline pill. Doxycycline was invented in the goddam sixties. So Galderma keeps popping out new patents on it that are so lame one of the marketing VPs is listed as inventor. And a pill worth maybe 30cents can now be bought for $36. And most “new” drugs are actually developed by small research firms that are then bought by big pharma. I need a trigger warning for articles like this.
repeated. It's fucking horrible what the wsj does.
It's a Murdoch rag, that's how they roll.
Truvada for PrEP costs patients $1000+/mo, despite costing &20/mo to make, and researched with govt funding.
something I have never quite gotten - why did "we paid for this with our tax dollars"? pembrolizumab was actually out of an industry lab and did not come from a university or NCI. What am I missing?
The drug companies are consistently profitable, year after year, doesn't matter what the rest of the stock market is doing. They have completely gamed the system.
That's because they use the mugger's marketing strategy: Your money or your life! Same as the all the other parts of health care in America
Socialize the costs; privatize the profits. It’s the oligarch way. Wake me when someone orders a tumbrel.
Forget it kid, it's Murdoch-town..
Do David R. Henderson and Charles L. Hooper know Merck is a German pharmaceutical company?
They wrote this article on drugs
Yes. All drug companies, whether in the US or elsewhere, make a huge % of their money in the US market.
I'll have to tell a friend of mine that she and her husband should be grateful to pay $2,000 a month for their drugs. It's the patriotic thing to do.
"Some people claim that the American medical system isn’t very good because American life expectancy isn’t top tier. But as we know, Americans aren’t always models of health, moderation and safety."
This would almost approach the level of an argument that's worth addressing, if not for the fact that they make no attempt to quantify to what extent (if any) Americans are worse at these things than other people.
It must be nice to be so privileged like those two WSJ assholes. Must be very nice indeed to not have to worry about the cost of medication indeed.
I am uninsured. Now that both of my parents have passed if I get some expensive illness I will forgo treatment because I'm not going to ring up all that debt.
This is healthcare in America.
Thanks for the great article Pennacchia.
Just one more reason to kick Joe Lieberman in the balls........
With boots that have spikes built into their steel toes.