4 ms·

This. Do we need to subsidize Sweden and Germany? I have wondered for a while why we don't make a law saying the highest price you can sell a drug for in the U

This. Do we need to subsidize Sweden and Germany? I have wondered for a while why we don't make a law saying the highest price you can sell a drug for in the US is no higher than the lowest negotiated price that drug is sold to in other rich countries. So if Canada negotiates a drug for $10 then that is the highest price you can sell it for here etc. That way they can set the prices however they want but collective buying agreements that are a part of socialized healthcare don't end up shifting the burden of cost to the US.

themihai 10y ago
Something tells me this would be against some WTO rules. The US gov could simply negotiate a better deal just like Germany, Sweden or any other country does but...I guess the lobby plays a important role in the grand scheme of things so unless the US electorate puts pressure on the government you won't see a better deal.
chimeracoder 10y ago
> I have wondered for a while why we don't make a law saying the highest price you can sell a drug for in the US is no higher than the lowest negotiated price that drug is sold to in other rich countries. You don't need a rule to enforce that. You just need to allow the US to reimport prescription drugs that were originally exported from the US. It would be far and away the simplest solution and would have the same end result[0]. Unfortunately, Congress has voted against that, so we're stuck with the status quo. [0] The difference between the prices charged in the US and the prices charged in any other country could be no greater than the costs of reimporting the drugs from that country - or else people would just buy the reimported versions instead of the domestic ones[1]. This has the desired outcome of equalizing the prices [1] Which, remember, are literally the same drugs manufactured at the same plants by the same company.
- ferentchak 10y ago
  It's a nit pick but those prices would always be a bit higher after the effort to import them and source them etc. Of course this will never happen. No politician wants to have her name tied to the bill that allowed all those dangerous drugs into the country that killed kids. One mistaken import or a badly made counterfeit being imported would be a media frenzy.
  - chimeracoder 10y ago
    > It's a nit pick but those prices would always be a bit higher after the effort to import them and source them etc. That's what I said: > The difference between the prices charged in the US and the prices charged in any other country could be no greater than the costs of reimporting the drugs from that country As for: > Of course this will never happen. No politician wants to have her name tied to the bill that allowed all those dangerous drugs into the country that killed kids. That's not true at all. The Senate voted on this exact proposal on Jan 17th (not for the first time). The measure failed, but only by a few votes[0]. > One mistaken import or a badly made counterfeit being imported would be a media frenzy. We're talking about importing drugs only from countries which recognize US patent laws, such as Canada. The risk of counterfeit drugs entering the supply from reimporting is no greater than the risk of counterfeit drugs entering the supply domestically in either US or Canada. Besides, this is already done for other drugs, just not prescription drugs that are on patent. [0] https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=115&session=1&vote=00020 https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_...
bermanoid 10y ago
This really doesn't need to be that complicated. The US could quite easily negotiate lower drug prices with drug companies, without setting up a convoluted scheme that references other countries, by simply doing so. There's just no political will, because strong negotiation would hurt drug companies in the US. And unless that political will somehow materializes, the situation won't change.

themihai 10y ago

Something tells me this would be against some WTO rules. The US gov could simply negotiate a better deal just like Germany, Sweden or any other country does but...I guess the lobby plays a important role in the grand scheme of things so unless the US electorate puts pressure on the government you won't see a better deal.

chimeracoder 10y ago

> I have wondered for a while why we don't make a law saying the highest price you can sell a drug for in the US is no higher than the lowest negotiated price that drug is sold to in other rich countries. You don't need a rule to enforce that. You just need to allow the US to reimport prescription drugs that were originally exported from the US. It would be far and away the simplest solution and would have the same end result[0]. Unfortunately, Congress has voted against that, so we're stuck with the status quo. [0] The difference between the prices charged in the US and the prices charged in any other country could be no greater than the costs of reimporting the drugs from that country - or else people would just buy the reimported versions instead of the domestic ones[1]. This has the desired outcome of equalizing the prices [1] Which, remember, are literally the same drugs manufactured at the same plants by the same company.

ferentchak 10y ago
It's a nit pick but those prices would always be a bit higher after the effort to import them and source them etc. Of course this will never happen. No politician wants to have her name tied to the bill that allowed all those dangerous drugs into the country that killed kids. One mistaken import or a badly made counterfeit being imported would be a media frenzy.
- chimeracoder 10y ago
  > It's a nit pick but those prices would always be a bit higher after the effort to import them and source them etc. That's what I said: > The difference between the prices charged in the US and the prices charged in any other country could be no greater than the costs of reimporting the drugs from that country As for: > Of course this will never happen. No politician wants to have her name tied to the bill that allowed all those dangerous drugs into the country that killed kids. That's not true at all. The Senate voted on this exact proposal on Jan 17th (not for the first time). The measure failed, but only by a few votes[0]. > One mistaken import or a badly made counterfeit being imported would be a media frenzy. We're talking about importing drugs only from countries which recognize US patent laws, such as Canada. The risk of counterfeit drugs entering the supply from reimporting is no greater than the risk of counterfeit drugs entering the supply domestically in either US or Canada. Besides, this is already done for other drugs, just not prescription drugs that are on patent. [0] https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=115&session=1&vote=00020 https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_...

bermanoid 10y ago

This really doesn't need to be that complicated. The US could quite easily negotiate lower drug prices with drug companies, without setting up a convoluted scheme that references other countries, by simply doing so. There's just no political will, because strong negotiation would hurt drug companies in the US. And unless that political will somehow materializes, the situation won't change.