3 ms·

I get that point, but given that Ozempic sells for significantly less in other countries I think it's worth considering why it's that much more expensive in the

I get that point, but given that Ozempic sells for significantly less in other countries I think it's worth considering why it's that much more expensive in the US

SmellTheGlove 3y ago
Exactly this. And it’s because the US consumer is paying for the R&D on drugs for the rest of the world. We could balance this out a bit by passing a law that says the retail cost of a drug in the US can’t be any higher than the median of the EU + Canada (or something approximating the set of developed economies).
- Scandiravian 3y ago
  I do get that point, but I'm not sure it would actually work Drug prices in the US are, in part, higher because FDA requirements are much, much stricter so it's more difficult to actually get a drug approved. It's simply more expensive to launch a product in the US, so if it becomes less profitable it might not be worth the risk for companies You could also risk that drug companies launch an analogue of the effective compound in the US to circumvent such a regulation, since it would be two different drugs The reason it's cheaper in Europe is in some part due to having single payer healthcare, which mean that there's a single entity negotiating purchase prices for the entire country, which improves bargaining power significantly
xyzal 3y ago
Isn't everything healthcare-related much more expensive in the US?
- Scandiravian 3y ago
  It is, which is why I think it's silly to focus on a single drug, when I think it's a pretty obvious systemic issue in how the US has structured its healthcare system
pfdietz 3y ago
It's because those other countries are free riders. I think we should do the same thing in reverse on limiting CO2 emissions. How does that sound?
- Scandiravian 3y ago
  Can you elaborate on how other countries are free riders? It's not like the board at Novo has a board meeting where they decide "we hate the US so lets charge them more for our products" The simple fact is that the US has higher drug prices because it has created a healthcare system that allows pharmaceutical companies to charge much more for their products The way to lower drug prices is to change the system to prevent that
  - pfdietz 3y ago
    They have monopsonies. The drug maker has a choice of either losing some operating profit or going along with the price they set. The free riding is in these countries not paying a price that pays their share of the development cost of the drug.
    - Ekaros 3y ago
      These companies are not selling drugs at loss in these countries. And these countries are not forcing the sale of drugs in the first place. The companies choose to take some profit over none. That does not make smarter countries that do negotiation anyway free riders.
      - pfdietz 3y ago
        Indeed, they are not selling the drugs at a price that is below their marginal costs. But they are also not selling drugs at a price that compensates them for the development cost, including the cost of drugs that didn't reach the market. They are free riding on this latter part.
        3y ago

I get that point, but given that Ozempic sells for significantly less in other countries I think it's worth considering why it's that much more expensive in the US

SmellTheGlove 3y ago

Exactly this. And it’s because the US consumer is paying for the R&D on drugs for the rest of the world. We could balance this out a bit by passing a law that says the retail cost of a drug in the US can’t be any higher than the median of the EU + Canada (or something approximating the set of developed economies).

Scandiravian 3y ago
I do get that point, but I'm not sure it would actually work Drug prices in the US are, in part, higher because FDA requirements are much, much stricter so it's more difficult to actually get a drug approved. It's simply more expensive to launch a product in the US, so if it becomes less profitable it might not be worth the risk for companies You could also risk that drug companies launch an analogue of the effective compound in the US to circumvent such a regulation, since it would be two different drugs The reason it's cheaper in Europe is in some part due to having single payer healthcare, which mean that there's a single entity negotiating purchase prices for the entire country, which improves bargaining power significantly

xyzal 3y ago

Isn't everything healthcare-related much more expensive in the US?

Scandiravian 3y ago
It is, which is why I think it's silly to focus on a single drug, when I think it's a pretty obvious systemic issue in how the US has structured its healthcare system

pfdietz 3y ago

It's because those other countries are free riders. I think we should do the same thing in reverse on limiting CO2 emissions. How does that sound?

Scandiravian 3y ago
Can you elaborate on how other countries are free riders? It's not like the board at Novo has a board meeting where they decide "we hate the US so lets charge them more for our products" The simple fact is that the US has higher drug prices because it has created a healthcare system that allows pharmaceutical companies to charge much more for their products The way to lower drug prices is to change the system to prevent that
- pfdietz 3y ago
  They have monopsonies. The drug maker has a choice of either losing some operating profit or going along with the price they set. The free riding is in these countries not paying a price that pays their share of the development cost of the drug.
  - Ekaros 3y ago
    These companies are not selling drugs at loss in these countries. And these countries are not forcing the sale of drugs in the first place. The companies choose to take some profit over none. That does not make smarter countries that do negotiation anyway free riders.
    - pfdietz 3y ago
      Indeed, they are not selling the drugs at a price that is below their marginal costs. But they are also not selling drugs at a price that compensates them for the development cost, including the cost of drugs that didn't reach the market. They are free riding on this latter part.
      - 3y ago