Why purchase prescription drugs in Canada?

Because you can save $$$$$? c.i.

c.i.
The question is should we have to go to such lenghts to save money. Why doesn't the government impose caps as do the Canadians and probably most of the nations of the world?

Why, indeed! It seems to me that our government representatives have sold their souls to the pharmaceutical companies. What other reason is there? c.i.

Hi there au1929! The same thing is so
commonly done in Mexico border towns it is amazing.
I lived in Mexico for awhile and some of what I saw
was a big shock for me. They still make and sell the
same old fashioned VW bug that used to be available
here in the USA and have been making and selling them
all this time in Mexico. They cost about $6,000. Brand new
car for 6 grand!!!???! I spent about 10-12 days in a very
nice hospital in San Miguel de Allende, in Guanajuato,
Mexico and the total cost = roughly $3000. They still use
those glass IV bottles, they don't use these expensive IV
pumps used here in the USA. One of my meds for rheumatoid
arthritis - I paid $7.00 per bottle in Mexico, and I pay
about $40. here at home. My big question, being as we
have trade agreements as NAFTA, why can't the our
government purchase prescriiption drugs via Mexico
(which is even cheaper than Canada) for our Medicare patients
who get ZERO prescription coverage unless - if you elect to
join an HMO (bad idea) you may get up to a max of $500 per
year in prescription costs. That may be great for some
folks, but with my RA, the amounts I have to spend on
medications is awful. I would use up the $500 yearly limit
in my first or second month of each new year. Actually, if
it weren't for the severity of my illness, I probably would
still be living in Mexico ... we had a great apartment, and
a maid who cleaned every day, utilities included, and all for
$400 a month. Going out to eat was so cheap - I rarely had
to cook, and if I did, I never had to do the dishes. But after
landing in the hospital there and having to pay cash ( Medicare
doesn't cover you when you are out of the USA) I just didn't
feel very safe about staying there. It's a good thing I DID
come home, for I have since then had 2 hospital stays of
over 10 days each - in the past 18 months.
Why are there no caps here in the US??? The answer to
that question would no doubt be found in the major drug
corporations lobbying organizations doing their job very
well in Washington DC. Wish we had some serious lobbyists
on our side, don't you? I fear it is a matter of whatever
the public will tolerate.

babsatamelia
Having looked into the reasons for disparity of costs between Canada, Mexico and the US the only answer I could find was that someone must pay for the costs of research and development and we the citizens of the US have been elected.
That is a hell of an answer but that seems to be the only answer I could get. Believe it or not.
Anyone know another reason?

A significant amount of drug research and development is done outside of the U.S. U.S. drug costs shouldn't reflect the research done in Canada, China, Germany, France etc.

Perhaps this is an overly skeptical opinion, but I think prescription drugs are expensive in the U.S. because of the influence given to lobbyists. I think it's part of your system. That's a view from outside.

ehBeth
Perhaps the moneys are required for the purchase of congress?

There are probably 30 or 40 reason that all contribute to the differences. Each country has different government subsidies on drugs, different regulatory schemes, different political influences, different legal liability and court damage awards, buying practicies, distribution systems, etc.. I'm not even sure how much of the end cost is due to manufacurer's costs and how much of it is mark-up along the way to the end user.

I don't think we'd really ever know the true answers without being on the inside and seeing what is actually being paid for the drugs and how that cost was derived. I'm not much in favor of caps but I do think there are things that can be done to lower or at least hold down costs in in the US. Here in MA there has been quite a bit of talk of the state negotiating purchase contracts with the drug makers directly. A huge bulk agreement like that should give a state good bargining leverage.

au1929 - are you trying to 'out' me as a cynic of the first order about politics and capitalism? I was trying so hard not to say that's exactly what I think. Not what I know. What I think.

fishin, my ex worked/works/worked with drug manufacturers for a couple of decades. The cost of most prescription drugs, even factoring in research costs, is shockingly low. There is decent profit being made in Canada on the level of mark-up here. When I hear about people paying 10 and 100 times as much as I do for some meds, it is truly shocking.

In my work, I see a lot of U.S. and Canadian hospital bills. When I get a bill that includes $10 U.S. for a bandaid (and i mean a bandaid that you'd buy at Walmart or Walgreen, not a surgical or specialty bandage), I can do nothing but stare at it for a few minutes. There is no real way to make that single bandaid worth $10 U.S., but there is clearly a way that suppliers and vendors can bill these amounts. In our office, we call it 'the american way'. That's our explanation for any outrageous medical bill we get from the U.S.

ehBeth, Actually, the hospital only charges .02c for the bandaid, but $9.98 for the nurse that puts it on. c.i.

I've gotten a few of those types of bills myself but I have to question where the $10 figure comes from. I doubt the hospital is paying that much for them from the manufacturer so it's a little difficult to blame Johnson & Johnson for that $10/band-aid cost. That is what most people are doing with perscription costs, the blame is largely being dumped directly on the drug makers but I don't know that that is in any way accurate so putting a cap on what makers sell them for seems to be a quick fix that may very well do nothing. I'm not saying the makers should be in the clear and not looked at but there is more to it than just that.

I buy insulin monthly for my daughter and I know that I can get it here in MA for right at $80/bottle but if I drive 3 miles into NH I can get the exact same insulin for $46/bottle from the same pharmacy chain. Why would that be? Same exact perscription (Humilin), same retailer, same distribution chain. The only difference is the state line. (I do know that $4 of that difference is a perscription "bottle tax" that the State of MA levies on every perscription filled.)

c.i., the billing for the medical service provider comes to us separately.

fishin, i don't think the manufacturer is responsible for the full difference in cost, but i suspect that is part of the difference. Honestly, i've always been a bit nervous to investigate it too much - i worry that the results might make me more annoyed than i already am.

Yes, I know! We even saw an aspirin charge of $6. ;( c.i.

The high cost of drug development is something
that is not a US phenomenom. Any drug that is
invented and passes its testing period and gets
to the market --- thanks to our FDA, ensuring
that the thalidomide disaster never happens again.
But, it seems we are all paying an awfully high
price for that. The same drug companies sell
the exact same drug all over the world. So,
why is the pricing different in different places,
it is based on whatever the traffic will bear.
Whatever we will tolerate, that is what they
will charge us for it. Also, in a very poor
country like Mexico - they STILL want to sell
their drug, so they just sell it at a price that the
Mexicans can afford to pay. Same thing all
over the world.

I generally like the reasoning, babs, however our standard of living here in Canada is generally higher than the U.S., and our economy is growing faster right now. You'd think they'd be charging us more for the meds.

ehBeth, It's our 'political' system that hurts our citizens. It allows our drug companies to sell their products cheaper to other countries, while keeping prices high for it's own citizens. It's not so much "what the market will bear," because many retired folks on fixed incomes can't afford to pay the retail price of drugs they need. For them, it's the difference between food on the table or buying their presciption drug. Many opt for the food. ;( c.i.

c.i., that's pretty much what i was thinking, though 'the market' does have an effect as most meds here are covered through government or good company plans. Those large groups - feds, provinces and large insurers indicate what they are willing to pay and cover. The manufacturer's and distributor's need to keep that in mind to play here.