Pre-Medical Surgical Internship Article Response #5 Article #5: An effective eye drug is available for $50. But many doctors choose a $2,000 alternative In this article, the author discusses problems about two drugs, Avastin and Lucentis, that are used to deal with blindness and sight difficulty afflicting the elders in America (Whoriskey & Keating, 2013) and tries to answer the question that why so many doctors are more willing to prescribe the one that costs forty times more while both of the two biological cousins work equally well. Although the author successfully acknowledge the cause of this situation by revealing the problems in pharmaceutical industry, I think the existence of this system still have its eligible reasons …show more content…
Medicare also contributes to worsen such situation by issuing reimbursements to doctors partly based on the cost of the care provided. To some extent, patients are more willing to trust the specific drug their doctors prescribed to them even if it costs more. Furthermore, in this case of Avastin and Lucentis, it seems that the company that invented both drugs is trying everything they can, from rebate to lobbying, to keep all the doctors from substituting with the cheaper alternative ones. (Whoriskey, 2013) Last but not least, in order to correct the flaws and let the pharmaceutical industry keep blooming, I think it is crucial to restore medical ethics and corresponding policy. The "rebates" would be regarded as kickbacks in any other field of work. This idea has become a breach of medical morality and continued to plague the system. Although it would be very difficult to monitor every way in which doctors and pharmaceutical companies have financial relationship, some of the odious examples can definitely be picked out if we are really willing to. All in all, the goal is supposed to be for the doctors to choose the medically suitable drug, not the one he or she may have a financial interest in prescribing. Word Count: 545 Citations Whoriskey, P., Keating, D., (2013). An effective eye
This report is Part 1 of assignment for Marketing MBA 565-MBOL1 to Dr. Stephen Baglione
In our experience with Pharmasim we learned that Marketing decision making must be very sensitive and responsive to everything going on in the industry which is very complex. Consumer responses to marketing tactics can be volatile and unpredictable and no idea is guaranteed to work well. Marketing is a matter of meticulous research, assumptions, planning, and volatility at times. Overall we took away two major points: 1) that it is important to consider the product lifecycle in evaluating how to promote businesses and, 2) that the “Sweet Spot” as a competitive advantage should be the greatest point of consideration when evaluating how to best gain leverage to beat the competition in the minds of
The prices of prescription drugs in the United States are by far the highest in the world. [1] On average, Europeans pay 40% less than Americans for the same medications. [2] Consumers have been resorting to several ways, sometimes putting themselves in harm’s way, to alleviate the burden of high prescription drug costs. Some buy their medications online or cross the borders to neighboring countries so they would be able to afford buying their needed medications. Others have resorted to the illegal act of selling their unused medications in online forums just to recover part of their expenses. Many factors contribute to the increased drug prices in the United States including research and
The twenty-first century has seen pharmaceutical companies grow in unprecedented size and strength. Due to the unprecedented growth the larger pharmaceutical companies have gained leverage and power in the prescription drug industry, but they lack innovation to market and they seek ways to help the business continue to increase its profits. The pharmaceutical industry was once ethically sound and was a valuable player in the development of human health. However, overtime with the lack of innovation pharmaceutical companies are becoming an unethical market that exploits patients, doctors and anyone else it can to increase its profitability. With eyes only on profitability this can create a hazard for patients because there
Annually, the US spends $300 billion dollars on pharmaceutical drugs. This is due to the over-diagnosing of certain conditions. Everyday, Americans are exposed to an enormous amount of advertisements for medications of all kinds. For example, 1 in 10 Americans are taking
It just seems crooked. Now whenever an elderly man or woman goes to a pharmacy to pick up prescriptions, it is going to be too expensive. Ordinarily, Pharmacies would try and reduce the price of the drugs. The store would try and see if there was a similar one like the drug and just have the person pay for that one or contact the insurance company and have the insurance cover the drug. Consequently, people just cannot pay for the drug by itself. Now, people pay both the insurance company and pharmacy just for one prescription drug that may not be worth the cost. For example, Tolterodine (Detrol, Detrol LA). Tolterodine, or Detrol, is a prescription drug used to help and control the
Anyone who has purchased prescription medications has probably wondered why they cost so much, and rightfully so. Medication prices in the United States have been on a steady increase for decades, however, prices have been drastically increasing as of recent. Pharmaceutical companies have tried to justify these price increases due to the demand, the high cost of research, and the high costs of development and approval. Notwithstanding, the extent to which the prices have increased is not justifiable. Americans should be against these high medication prices and take action because pharmaceutical companies are taking advantage of our healthcare system in order to capitalize from the sick. In order shed some light on this issue, the magnitude, scope, and consequences of these prices must be examined.
Anyone who has purchased prescription medications has probably wondered why they cost so much, and rightfully so. Medication prices in the United States have been on a steady increase for decades, however, prices have been drastically increasing as of recent. Pharmaceutical companies have tried to justify these price increases due to the demand, the high cost of research, and the high costs of development and approval. Notwithstanding, the extent to which the prices have increased is not justifiable. Americans should be against these high medication prices and take action because pharmaceutical companies are taking advantage of our health care system in order to capitalize from the sick. In order shed some light on this issue, we must examine the magnitude, scope, and consequences of these rises in price.
U. S. citizens pay the highest prescription drug prices in the world. This is an injustice that must be corrected. The "U.S. forbids the import of prescription drugs by anyone other than the original U.S. manufacturer, and even then only when the drugs meet all the approval requirements of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)" (Barlett & Steele, 2004). Prescription drug prices are outrageously high in the United States because of the influence of advertising on consumer purchasing, the misleading statements by pharmaceutical companies about the cost of research and development of new drugs, the manipulation of patent laws, the antiquated laws regarding importation of
The purpose of medicine is as contested of a notion as the term patient. While there are certain ends in which it is clear that medicine seeks to achieve, controversy often arises over how medicine chooses to achieve these certain goals. One such controversy is the treatment of patient-symptoms, more specifically, the role of medication in treating patients. The purpose of this essay is not to discuss the general issues of prescribing medication. Rather, the purpose is
Effective medication helps with the rising cost of health care. When medication is working, the patient’s visits to the hospital and doctor’s office will decrease. The cost of new medication is exceeding the buyer’s ability to pay for it, and pharmaceutical companies begin to lose money when the drug loses its patent. However, generic drugs become available for the medication, and patients can afford to purchase it to treat their disease or condition. National discussions with providers, payers, and health policy makers have seriously considered various solutions for mitigating drug cost, with the ultimate goal of allowing patients to access appropriate and necessary treatments (Li & Shane, 2017). The government no longer has to decide who gets the medication, and certain therapies because of cost. Insurance companies will now cover the drug in its generic form. On the other hand, the pharmaceutical companies can no longer profit from and generic drug, and are forced to make new and improved drugs for profit. The patient will benefit by getting the medication that is needed to have a better quality of
Other opponents charge that the high prices of drugs aren’t examples of price gouging at all, but necessary increases for drug makers to recoup costs of research and development. Yet a Health Affairs study shows otherwise: enough money is made by US drug companies that they could cover research and development and still save “US patients, businesses, and taxpayers approximately $40 billion” per year, if they operated like the rest of the world.
The rising cost of prescriptions in the United States has become a huge threat to patients and to owners of hospitals. Most pharmacy companies are buying drugs that are undervalued, then they are raising the prices up to gain more profit. Even some companies admit to rising the cost up 212% (AHA, 2015). The more the cost of prescriptions go up, the greater chance there is that people will give up on taking the drugs and just suffer through or buy over the counter medicines. The purpose of this paper is the inform people of the affects and consequences of these drugs beginning to rise in costs. Lives can
The rise in costs of prescription medicines affects all sectors of the health care industry, including private insurers, public programs, and patients. Spending on prescription drugs continues to be an important health care concern, particularly in light of rising pharmaceutical costs, the aging population, and increased use of costly specialty drugs. In recent history, increases in prescription drug costs have outpaced other categories of health care spending, rising rapidly throughout the latter half of the 1990s and early 2000s. (Kaiseredu.org, 2012).
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.