Many people in America view medical professionals in a very positive light, however, there are others that view the American medical system as a leech. The main points that people like to refer to are the outrageous profit margin on prescription drugs in America. The other point being that health insurance companies squeeze every penny out of their customers that they can. The way the American medical system works is largely due to the fact that we are a capitalist society. The governments of Europe that offer free health care are welfare states so their hospitals are not as reliant on profit from patients as those in America. Based upon how large the disparity is between the price of similar procedures and drugs, America seems like it's charging much more than it should for these services. An example is a medication for hepatitis that costs 30 dollars in America and 50 cents in India. This drug was the exact same medication from the same company, but in America the price is inflated by 6000%. This gap is due to the difference in wealth between America and India. It makes sense to charge less for something in a poorer country, but the fact that these companies still make money selling their medication at 50 cents a dose raises a few questions. Who can't afford it in America because of higher prices? I don't agree with prices being raised 6000% but I can understand the need to inflate them somewhat because pharmaceuticals are a business. For the most part, I feel that we need to make healthcare more affordable and available worldwide. This can't be achieved by making them harder to attain by raising prices.
-Alex Wallace
I found your post very interesting and fluid. I don't usually think about things like this, but you really raised a valid point. The comparison between the price of medication in the states compared to India was impactful to see, because it's more effective to actually see the difference. I also agree with the conclusion you came to, that medication needs to be priced more reasonably.
ReplyDelete