To Eat, Or Not To Eat Is The Question For Many Of Us

We, in the US, are the most abused people when it comes to the life saving drugs like Insulin many of us depend on to stay alive.  People without insurance pay on average $1,000 per month, needless to say, some pay much more; it is really a form of gross extortion.

 Refer to the BBC article, the link to which is shown below.
"In 1923, the discoverers of insulin sold its patent for $1, hoping the low price would keep the essential treatment available to everyone who needed it.

Now, retail prices in the US are around the $300 range for all insulins from the three major brands that control the market.
Even accounting for inflation, that's a price increase of over 1,000%.
Stories of Americans rationing insulin - and dying for it - have been making national headlines."


It may have made the news once, and then was dropped like a hot potato.  I, a news junkie, do not recall ever hearing of it.  Moreover, I am under the impression the BBC reports News, and not stories from the archives of other media outlets, hence, they just discovered these facts as well; that is my assumption.  When people have to forego essential nutrition in order to afford their lifesaving drugs, or take less of the required dosage, so that they can eat, it is alarming by any standard.

Do you remember when being a Millionaire was a big deal, now you have to be a Billionaire to get attention, so it seems?  Everything appears to increase, for the wealthy, by a factor of 1000, except the average working stiff is mostly flat-lined, as far as wages are concerned, when considering inflation.  Is this a just society?  I think not.  Where is this exaggerated wealth coming from?  It comes from unjust wealth extraction from the rest of; criminally inflated drug prices is just one example. 


The following chart, shown below, makes this very point.




https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-47491964

When the US is compared to other countries on topics like education, and healthcare for all, etc., we don't look so good.  However, when one compares the costs for healthcare, we certainly are on the top of the list, as he most expensive.  We, in the US, are legends in our own mind when we exclaim that we are the best/the greatest country in the world; whom are we kidding?  Our Government and the businesses who donate large sums of money for their election war-chests, in return for letting them bleed the public to dead, are nothing but antisocial characters, more like sociopaths who probably never miss a Sunday in church.  Hypocrites, one can add to the list, that is all they are.

Where is the Press in all of this ongoing, drug related health crisis?  They think by slamming the President daily, they are doing their job.  It appears, their job is to keep us occupied with their tabloid stories, so that we have no time to pay attention to the real needs of people around us.  After all, these national news media outlets are owned by a few, who are part of the social problem, and their employees better write their stories not to piss-off the boss.

Some doctors are no help either, a case in point is a personal experience my wife had, just a short while ago; she needed eye drops to lower the eye pressure.  The Ophthalmologist prescribed a proprietary drug that even with insurance was still over $30 per month; they tried to convince her that there were no other choices.  When I did a little research I found that the generic drug Latanoprost was not only less expensive but was more easily taken by patients, which  my wife confirmed.  Now instead of $30 per month she spends only $5 for three months supply.

Let us not just shake our heads, and forget about it, let us start a conversation with others, and if enough people care, maybe we can make some noise that those politicians cannot afford to ignore, especially during election time.

Pass this, and other stories like it, to people you care about, to get the conversation started.