4 ms·

Are you kidding? https://www.rand.org/news/press/2021/01/28.html https://www.rand.org/news/press/2021/01/28.html > Prescription Drug Prices in the United Stat

by dv_dt 5y ago

Are you kidding? https://www.rand.org/news/press/2021/01/28.html https://www.rand.org/news/press/2021/01/28.html > Prescription Drug Prices in the United States Are 2.56 Times Those in Other Countries

xyzzyz 5y ago
So are the nannies and the landscapers. Are these also a racket?
- jacobolus 5y ago
  Services from nannies and landscapers are nontradeable goods. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tradability https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tradability
  - mlindner 5y ago
    Drugs are almost non-tradable goods because of all the regulations and differences in drug standards between countries.
    - naasking 5y ago
      So they're artificially non-tradeable, not innately non-tradeable like the other examples.
- pkphilip 5y ago
  It is just amazing to watch people in the US defend the price gouging in healthcare in the US. The medicine prices are MUCH lower in other parts of the world - including in places where the cost of living is much higher than in the US such as Norway and Switzerland. The cost of Insulin is 8x higher in the US than in comparable countries around the world. https://pharmanewsintel.com/news/insulin-prices-8x-higher-in-the-us-compared-to-similar-nations https://pharmanewsintel.com/news/insulin-prices-8x-higher-in...
- throwaway743 5y ago
  Are you that out of touch to not realize those services are luxuries and not life saving health treatments?
- hnbad 5y ago
  Maybe I'm weird but I don't have a nanny or landscaper and neither does anyone I know or any of their relatives that I'm aware of. But I pay a flat €5 for most prescription drugs (the rest are free) and my public health insurance costs are capped at about €700 per month (and I get to keep it for free if I become unemployed).
- stjohnswarts 5y ago
  We're talking western countries, not places where you would expect it to be less like Mexico, India, Brazil. Basic domestic services are going to be about the same across various western countries. Drugs and health services in general are 2-4x what other western countries pay AT A MINIMUM. Most have free health care.
- herbst 5y ago
  You never been to Switzerland I guess. Cheap meds and WAY MORE expensive manual labor.

by dv_dt 5y ago

xyzzyz 5y ago

So are the nannies and the landscapers. Are these also a racket?

jacobolus 5y ago
Services from nannies and landscapers are nontradeable goods. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tradability https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tradability
- mlindner 5y ago
  Drugs are almost non-tradable goods because of all the regulations and differences in drug standards between countries.
  - naasking 5y ago
    So they're artificially non-tradeable, not innately non-tradeable like the other examples.
pkphilip 5y ago
It is just amazing to watch people in the US defend the price gouging in healthcare in the US. The medicine prices are MUCH lower in other parts of the world - including in places where the cost of living is much higher than in the US such as Norway and Switzerland. The cost of Insulin is 8x higher in the US than in comparable countries around the world. https://pharmanewsintel.com/news/insulin-prices-8x-higher-in-the-us-compared-to-similar-nations https://pharmanewsintel.com/news/insulin-prices-8x-higher-in...
throwaway743 5y ago
Are you that out of touch to not realize those services are luxuries and not life saving health treatments?
hnbad 5y ago
Maybe I'm weird but I don't have a nanny or landscaper and neither does anyone I know or any of their relatives that I'm aware of. But I pay a flat €5 for most prescription drugs (the rest are free) and my public health insurance costs are capped at about €700 per month (and I get to keep it for free if I become unemployed).
stjohnswarts 5y ago
We're talking western countries, not places where you would expect it to be less like Mexico, India, Brazil. Basic domestic services are going to be about the same across various western countries. Drugs and health services in general are 2-4x what other western countries pay AT A MINIMUM. Most have free health care.
herbst 5y ago
You never been to Switzerland I guess. Cheap meds and WAY MORE expensive manual labor.