On Wed, 17 Sep 2008 01:35:10 -0400, the infamous "Ed Huntress"
scrolled the following:


"Larry Jaques" wrote in message
.. .

I read some article sometime way back which stated that they had
records showing that the pill price was 250 (or 2,500?) times that of
the cost. Pills that expensive don't sell a lot, but they don't
-have- to, do they? What's the cost for Interferon and other AIDS
drugs? They're getting $1,000-1,500 per month per _patient_ for
those. Keflex (a pennicillin kin) is $45 for four pills. Seniors are
paying hundreds of dollars a month for each prescription not covered
by the vacuous and vague Medicare Part D. And I've only touched the
tip of that iceberg.

The trouble with that iceberg is that you're looking at the cost of
manufacturing the second pill, which often is pennies. But the cost of the
first pill often tops $300 million. Are you with me?

I'm aware of that. I'm just saying that it still seems extreme.
They'll sell hundreds of millions of those pills and recoup their
costs the first year. The next sixteen years are billions in gravy.
At our expense.


Canada gets the second pill. We have to buy the first one -- but we get to
spread the cost across all the pills we buy. If we bought the second one
there would be no one to buy the first one. Then there would be no pills for
anyone.

I'm not saying I like the situation, but that's the way it is when you don't
have price controls. All those other countries get to have price controls
only because we don't have any. Are you still with me?

Praps. What are you saying would happen if we were to impose price
controls?


Do you still like unregulated markets? Are you still planning to vote
Libertarian? Where's strabo when we need him? d8-)

Hey, even the stoutest Libertarian knows there are limits to
deregulation.


As I said, I have an agreement with my body to die instead of getting
really, really sick. Then burn me and feed me to the fishes. I'll be
back. wink

I'd rather see you have a system whereby paying the individual rate for
insurance coverage didn't break the bank.

I'm pretty sure I would, too. But I'm not holding my breath.

--
Once we believe in ourselves, we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous
delight, or any experience that reveals the human spirit.
--e e cummings