The Rise in the Price of Prescription Drugs In the business of drug production over the years, there have been astronomical gains in the technology of pharmaceutical drugs. More and more drugs are being made for diseases and viruses each day, and there are many more drugs still undergoing research and testing. These "miracle" drugs are expensive, however, and many Americans cannot afford these prices. Prescription drug prices rose three times faster than inflation in the decade between 1981 and 1991, making the pharmaceutical industry the nation's most profitable business. Prescription drugs even exceeded the rapidly rising inflation rate for all other medical services. They now represent at least 10% of all the medical costs in the United States.1 Why are the prices so high? Some critics of the drug companies argue that the larger firms are ripping off the American public, are dishonest and, in some cases, unsafe. On the other hand, there are health care workers such as doctors and their supporters who claim that research and testing for drugs costs money. This supposedly justifies their prices for their products. Also, as an argument to their side, they say that their practice is a benefit to the improvement to mankind. It is a life saving business, but are these prices justified? As one can see, this is a very important issue in medicine today. It affects everyone involved with medicine, which is much of the American public. It also affects the physicians and drug makers. Government factors into the equation of the argument. Critics of the drug industry say that there is not enough regulation, while supporters of the pharmaceutical companies argue that there is too much regulation and that that is one... ... middle of paper ... ... near future. They key to this is that people forget about how much money they make and to simply just work for the betterment of mankind. Bibliography: 1Drake, Donald and Marian Uhlman: Making Medicine Making Money; Universal Press, 1993, p 1. 2Silverman, Milton, et al: Bad Medicine; Stanford University Press, 1992, p 209-210. 3Walker, Hugh: Market Power and Price levels in the Ethical Drug Industry; Indiana University Press, 1971, P 25. 4Breckon, William: The Drug Makers; Bowering Press Plymouth, 1972, p 145. 5Statman, Meir: Competition in the Pharmaceutical Industry; American Enterprise, 1983, p 45. 6Northrup, Jonathan: Prescription drug pricing in Independent and Chain Drugstores; UPENN, 1975, p 4. 7Lindsay, Cotton: The Pharmaceutical Industry; Wiley Medical Publication, 1978, p 73. 8Chetley, Andrew: A Healthy Business; Zed Books, 1990.
Abramsons points are well taken, and it truly is a shame that the medical industry has become a business. In my opinion, if the pharmaceutical industry was taken out of the hands of the capitalist marketplace and given the to the government, it would become less of a business. Prescription drugs are not ordinary consumer goods; they are products that can ultimately save lives. If a money-oriented company controls these products, it is inevitable selling the drug would become a greater priority than actually creating a beneficial drug. Which as a result, will to the creation many well-marketed yet ineffective
There seems to be no law protecting patients from the price increases that these big pharmaceutical companies are making. Marcia Angell, is an American physician, author, and the first woman to serve as editor-in-chief of the New England Journal of Medicine. In chapter 10 of her book, The Truth About the Drug Companies, she talks about stretching out the idea on monopoly. Patents makes it illegal for a specific set amount of time for competitors to sell the same/similar drugs. Once the patent is over, when the company loses its rights to a drug, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) arranges for the generic version of the drugs made by a different company to go out on the market. When there is only one generic brand on the market, the cost may not be as cheap because the generic brand and the brand name shadow prices. This keeps the generic version just beneath the price of the brand name. Although the generic is not that much cheaper than the brand name, in the course of one year, the brand name company will lose hundred of millions of dollars due to generic drugs. From an economic point of view,
The United States of America accounts for only 5% of the world’s population, yet as a nation, we devour over 50% of the world’s pharmaceutical medication and around 80% of the world’s prescription narcotics (American Addict). The increasing demand for prescription medication in America has evoked a national health crisis in which the government and big business benefit at the expense of the American public.
For years, the price of drugs have been held in congress because the cost of pharmaceutical drugs is the most controversial aspect of this industry. Stuart Schweitzer, a professor of health policy and management at the University of California Los Angeles, author of Pharmaceutical Economics and Policy, comments on this topic. According to Schweitzer, consumers are more sensitive to drug prices more than the price other health services. Schweitzer states, “Consumers are more likely to complain about a $50 bottle of tablets than a $500 radiology procedure, or a $5000 hospital stay”. This may be due the fact that these procedure and hospital stays are less frequent than taking prescription medication that is needed continuous. Most patients are seeing multiple doctors and nurses, that is accounting for the cost. Whereas at a pharmacy, they only see the pharmacist for a consultation and then the patient goes home to take their medication. Consumers may expect this to be cheaper because they are not receiving extensive care. To bring a new drug onto the market in the 1990s, it costed $359 million compared to $1.7 billion in 2003. Pricing of most products is usually based on marginal cost, which is the change in the total cost that comes from producing one extra item. However, this is not the case with the pharmaceutical industry because if prices were based on marginal cost, drugs would be a lot more
Large pharmaceutical industries are making large profits on medications. Having such a high cost for medication prevents patients from receiving the care that they need. These companies are overcharging for medications that are essential to maintaining the health of patients. This may result in patients resorting to desperate measure such as stealing, crime, and other illegal acts. The pharmaceutical industry may require a different set of moral standard because in a way these laws are preventing patients from a quality life. It is not ethical for pharmaceutical industries to make large profits on medications. Pharmaceutical industries that continues to make large profits from patients who needs their medication impairs their quality of life.
This is definitely a problem for consumers because they can have ties with the pharmaceutical and they have the ability to evoke the best interests for their company when pricing drugs. According to the drug makers and the intermediaries, the higher cost are needed to pay of rebates and providing discounts for insurers and employers. Despite providing incentives to those with insurance, this alienates those who have little to no insurance, they are left to burden the higher drug prices. In the U.S., there isn’t a checks and balances system when it comes to drug pricing like in the U.K. therefore some critics do not blame Mylan for raising the price for these drugs. Making and testing for innovative medicines requires years of research, which means money. Therefore, I do understand that drug makers, the pharmaceutical company and its investors want to get paid for the amount of time and money that they put into their new drug. However, I believe that they need to find that particular medium that helps the people especially those who are less fortunate and in need for this life-saving medication while being able to make a
In America, it has become a battle to earn a high paying job to cope with the expenses of a typical American. It has become even more of a battle for some people to afford medical prescriptions to keep healthy. Health becomes a crucial issue when discussed among people. No matter what, at one point or another, everyone is going to stand as a victim of the pharmaceutical industry. The bottom line is Americans are paying excessive amounts of money for medical prescriptions. Health-Care spending in the U.S. rose a stunning 9.3% in 2002, which is the greatest increase for the past eleven years. (Steele 46) Many pharmaceutical companies are robbing their clients by charging extreme rates for their products.
This privilege had dramatically driven up the price of medication, making medicines unaffordable to the poor. This problem—also known as health inequality—is now listed as one of the major issues in developing countries. There are many documented cases showing that poor people are losing out as a result of drug companies focusing on the most marketable medicines rather than the most urgently needed. For instance, let us consider the story of the drug eflornithine, which was originally developed in 1980s to treat cancer. The drug turned out to be ineffective as an anticancer agent, but it was found to be effective against sleeping sickness, a disease that accounts for thousands of deaths per year in Africa. However, Hoechst Marion Roussel (now Aventis), the company that developed it, ceased its manufacture in 1999, citing marketing failure (MacDonald,
There is no doubt that healthcare cost are rising out of control. No one likes the
From 1970 to 1998, the inflation-adjusted revenue of major pharmaceutical companies more than quadrupled to $81 billion, 24 percent of that from drugs affecting the central nervous system and sense organs. Sales of herbal medicines now exceed $4 billion a year. Meanwhile the war on Other drugs escalated dramatically. Since 1970 the federal antidrug budget has risen 3,700 percent and now exceeds $17 billion. More than one and half million people are arrested on drug charges each year, and 400,000 are now in prison. These numbers are just a window into an obvious truth: We take more drugs and reward those who supply them. We punish more people for taking drugs and especially punish those who supply them. On the surface, there is no conflict...The drug wars and the drug boom are interrelated, of the same body. The hostility and veneration, the punishment and profits, these come from the same beliefs and the same mistakes.
The United States spends more per capita on health care than any other country, with the percentage of gross domestic product dedicated to health care doubling from 9% in 1980 to 18% in 2011(Kesselheim,). One of the contributors to health care inflation is prescription drugs. Pharmaceuticals account for about 10% of total health care costs, spending on pharmaceuticals is poised to swell in upcoming years as a result of the increasing prices of complex specialty medicines (Kesselheim). Name brand drugs are going to have to be set at higher prices, in order for pharmaceutical companies to receive a profit. If the patient has full coverage on a medication, there is a greater chance that medication will be taken, although it may not be
There are three issues when it comes to the health care cost rising. The first is the rising cost in prescription drugs. The second area of rising cost is the increased technologies when it comes to the medical industry. The third problem is the aging population. Prescription drugs are the area of the fastest growing health care expense, and it is projected to grow at 20 to 30 percent each year over the next several years. There are many newer, more expensive drugs on the market, and the use of these prescriptions is exploding. In addition, with so much television advertising, many consumers ask their doctors for expensive, brand name drugs when there may actually be a generic drug that works just as well.
In recent years’ health reform has been a driving force in the United States political system. If you watch the news you will undoughtabley hear how citizens, the government, or the economy is or might be effected by some sort of change in medical regulation. One of these hot topic issues is the cost of prescription drugs. Every major drug market besides the United States regulates the price of drugs in some way (Abbott and Vernon). By the United states not doing so many believes it opens consumers up to be exploited by large pharmaceuticals companies. Other believe regulating drug prices limits investment, innovation, and competition in the pharmaceutical industry. In many ways both views are correct yet the later may have more long term lasting
Phatak, A. (1998 йил 01-01). The pharmaceutical industry and the medical profession. Retrieved 2012 йил 19-01 from Indian Journal of Medical Ethics: http://www.ijme.in/064cr131.html
the industry , which is the only appealing side of the drug trade, but it is not