Has anyone ever had to battle a pharmacy for their prescribed meds?
I always have the worst time getting my bipolar meds refilled. It really pisses me off!!!馃槫
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Subsumedpat 路 36-40, M
we so need to do something about our healthcare and pharma system.
DallasCowboysFan 路 61-69, M
@Subsumedpat Trump established a committee about a month ago during his State of the Union Address to bring down pharmaceutical prices. We pay more for drugs here, than they do overseas. It's not socialism, it's pricing. They charge more here because they now we are willing to pay more.
Subsumedpat 路 36-40, M
@DallasCowboysFan They charge more because the political fix is in due to their heavy contributions to campaigns and lobbying. Drug companies can't get away with what they do here in other companies. Politicians are bought and on big pharma's side.
Medicare insures more than 60 million beneficiaries, they are one of the biggest buyers of pharmaceuticals on the planet so you would think they could bargain for the best prices. ate the best prices. But not so.
Congress, our politicians, stopped it from getting the best drug prices years ago. In the law ironically called the Medicare Modernization Act. Among other things it did, it set up corporate Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) in charge of acquiring drugs through Medicare's "Part D" plan. On paper these middlemen to do the job of the government of getting good prices through the free market, seemed like a good idea, but it didn't work, the only thing it guaranteed was that it made profit for the corporations running the pharmacy benefit managers.
We need to put Medicare directly in charge of demanding the lowest drug prices, the corporations owning the PBM's are not going to like that and will fight any change, your politicians will vote for maintaining the status quo unless you throw the bums out or light a fire under their ass.
Countries with national or single-payer healthcare, it should be noted, offer drugs to citizens at a fraction of what U.S. healthcare patients pay.
Medicare insures more than 60 million beneficiaries, they are one of the biggest buyers of pharmaceuticals on the planet so you would think they could bargain for the best prices. ate the best prices. But not so.
Congress, our politicians, stopped it from getting the best drug prices years ago. In the law ironically called the Medicare Modernization Act. Among other things it did, it set up corporate Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) in charge of acquiring drugs through Medicare's "Part D" plan. On paper these middlemen to do the job of the government of getting good prices through the free market, seemed like a good idea, but it didn't work, the only thing it guaranteed was that it made profit for the corporations running the pharmacy benefit managers.
We need to put Medicare directly in charge of demanding the lowest drug prices, the corporations owning the PBM's are not going to like that and will fight any change, your politicians will vote for maintaining the status quo unless you throw the bums out or light a fire under their ass.
Countries with national or single-payer healthcare, it should be noted, offer drugs to citizens at a fraction of what U.S. healthcare patients pay.
DallasCowboysFan 路 61-69, M
@Subsumedpat I agree with everything you said. The pharma industry charges as much as it does because the govt and other insurers are willing to pay for it.
A few years ago I needed cataract surgery. I had to get 3 bottles of steroidal eye drops. Each bottle was less than an ounce. If I recall correctly, they were 60,150 and 400 dollars. If.....I paid cash. Insurance was about half the price and with my copay I probably paid $50 total. I don't understand why there are multiple prices for the same product. You don't pay 2,3,4 prices for a Big Mac at McD. And why is the cash price so much more? You would think it would be cheapest, because they get their money immediately and not a month later.
The medical industry is a crime syndicate. I don't know if it is the doctors or the insurance companies or the need to charge so much because of the lawyers that always want to sue them.
But something needs to change. I hope Trump can make something happen. At least the is trying.
A few years ago I needed cataract surgery. I had to get 3 bottles of steroidal eye drops. Each bottle was less than an ounce. If I recall correctly, they were 60,150 and 400 dollars. If.....I paid cash. Insurance was about half the price and with my copay I probably paid $50 total. I don't understand why there are multiple prices for the same product. You don't pay 2,3,4 prices for a Big Mac at McD. And why is the cash price so much more? You would think it would be cheapest, because they get their money immediately and not a month later.
The medical industry is a crime syndicate. I don't know if it is the doctors or the insurance companies or the need to charge so much because of the lawyers that always want to sue them.
But something needs to change. I hope Trump can make something happen. At least the is trying.
Subsumedpat 路 36-40, M
@DallasCowboysFan Trump can't meaningful change it and does not seem interested in healthcare reform past campaign slogans. It will take congressional action and a willingness to completely overturn the system an and rewrite all the rules.