prescription drugs

[ERNIEB]

I noticed there are a couple of stories on the evening news concerning prescription drugs. I have never payed much attention in the past, mainly because our insureance covers a considerable portion, and we haven't needed them much.
But not too long ago my mother had heart surgery. She is doing fine but does have to take enough pills to fill a good size medicine cabnet. Also she has to have tests from time to time and sometimes the Dr. changes a particular medicine.
I'm not questioning the DR's, but this is a lot of pills for anyone to have to buy, let alone if they are on a fixed income.
The POTUS has a plan, the Dem's have a plan, and it looks to me that this is just another political football. Then there is the thing about buying meds outside the US.
I know this subject has been hinted at in a couple of other posts. I'd really like to know what some of you think about this. Does anybody have a worth while plan?

Ernie

 

[cowboydoc]

Ernie,
None of the plans being proposed are worthwhile period! All that happens is that the people that don't need the medicine wind up paying for it in the form of taxes. All these different plans are are just different ways to take taxes and pay for people's medications. There is no easy answer or solution to the problem. If you cap the price on meds then there will be no further research done to come up with new drugs because there will be no incentive. Imagine you are in a job and I tell you Ernie all you can ever make is x amount but I want you to come up with the newest and brightest ideas for our companies and pour your life savings into doing but we're only going to pay you x amount. Yea right that wouldn't happen. The US is responsible for nearly 75% of the new drugs in the world that are discovered or made. The reason is that there is significant financial renumeration for doing so. Take that away and you will no longer see that. So either we get socialized medicine, which will only decrease the level of healthcare in the US, we pay for it with the taxes from those who don't need the service, or we leave things as they are. There is no good plan and there is no easy solution. Anyway you look at it somebody pays.

 

[Wingnut]

I have only two opinions on drugs:
1) the doctors perscribe way too many and always whatever the newest wonder-drug is (read "ultra-expensive")
2) all our 401(k)s should be at least half in drug company stocks ... cause they're bigger gougers than the utilities.

The drug plan I had in Canada was pretty good ... I paid 20% and the drugs are significantly cheaper there (in exchange for a longer patent)

Should the government create a drug plan (for everyone, for seniors or a combination of seriors and the "poor")? Not with my tax dollars ... at least not unless they disallow any drug costing more than a dime a pill ...
I know I'm in the absolute minority here .... but there's no guarantee on your life, that you're going to live forever, or that you will be "repaired" no matter what's wrong with you.
I, personally, do not want to live forever ... nor do I want to have my life prolonged just so that pills will keep me from feeling too much pain.
I also don't happen to believe in organ transplants or having an MRI to see if your hangnail is serious or not ..... I think we're throwing way to much money at healthcare ... and placing far too little value on the REAL quality of life.
Whew ... that was long winded ... forgive me ...

too bad that common sense ain't

 

[TWINKLE_TOES]

Ernie,

I was listening to the news recently and heard the high cost of drugs was due to the cost of research and development by the drug companies. This was countered by the fact that the drug companies spend significantly more on advertisement than on R&D. Go figure?/w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif

Al

 

[TWINKLE_TOES]

Wingnut,

<font color=blue>I also don't happen to believe in organ transplants </font color=blue>
I once pretty much held the same view, then my wife pointed out some things I never really thought much about. This is the wrong thread to discuss em, so I'll just say, not all organ receipents are old or rich. Sorry to distract from the topic just my 0.0002 C.

Al

 

[glennmac]

Ernie,

First you got us shooting ourselves in the head and now you got us taking pills!

Given this board's right wing slant on political matters, it will be interesting to see the responses to this issue, especially since a lot of us are middle-aged or older. (Once upon a time I didnt want to be middle-aged; now I'll take it.)

When I was younger I was sort of reflexively against what a lot of people called "socialized medicine." As I have gotten older and have seen family and friends suffer and die, I am much more sympathetic to the idea of some sort of universal healthcare. I only realized two years ago when my father became terminal that Medicare did not pay for drugs. That doesnt seem right.

I just dont have a clue what the answer is, however. Obviously, we all have to pay for whatever the plan is, and just as obviously our financial resources and taxation tolerance has limits.

I look forward to your next thread on abolishing farm subsidies./w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

 

[GlueGuy]

I don't know what the answer is, but it's a really, really big problem. My Dad died a month ago, rest his soul. However, for the last year or so his and my step-mom's medicine bill was over a $1,000 per month. I'll tell you right now that was not in the budget. It was getting pretty close to driving him out of a home he had lived in (and had paid off) a couple of decades ago. This is not right, but I am at a serious loss as to what can be done.

The only saving grace was that he was a vet (WWII), and the VA was able to pick up the tab on a good portion of his medications. The bad news was that he'd only gotten approval for it a week or two before he passed away. Really ticked me off how much the cost was.

The GlueGuy

 

[scruffy]

Ernie, my wife's prescriptions alone run over $500 a month, and believe me, it hurt when I was doing the personal services contracts! It was all out of pocket, because insurance was around $800 per month for a family of three. I decided to go back to the corporate world (last December) and luckily so. Our medical bills have sky rocketed to over $60G so far this year alone. I am sure glad that I don't have to pay the bills, nor pay for the prescriptions other than the $15 co-pay on brand name drugs, or $10 on generics.
My point? Guarenteed medical insurance for every family! Every job should provide medical insurance to its employees, with the availability of the employee adding a rider to cover their respective families. I pay a c-note every two weeks to cover my wife and son, but that is a tremendous break over the $800+ that like coverage cost me personally when I was not under the 'umbrella' so to speak.

 

[roysallis]

http://www.themedicineprogram.com
I have heard about this on TV and radio but do not know any more about it. If it is legit it may be a big help to those who have to take certain medications over a long period of time. If anyone checks into this please let this forum know what you find.

 

[cowboydoc]

Roysallis,
Yes that is a real program. Basically if you can't afford medication there are already govt. and other programs out there to help or pay for all of your medication. Can't afford though doesn't mean that you think the price is too high and don't want to spend your money on prescriptions, it means that you are actually at a poverty level of income and assets.

Wingnut also brings up a good point as well. The decision of whether or not to take drugs and what plan to follow is always up to the patient. I have more patients come in and just want to take a pill for this or that rather than do what they need to do. Lifestyle change, exercise, diet, etc. If people would just change their lifestyles there would be considerably less need for drugs or medicine.