A group of consumers claims that drug companies earn excessive profits because of the patents they have on....?
Of course. If the drug companies do not get to keep their patents as long, then there is less incentive for them to develop new drugs. They may earn excessive profits, but they also spend a lot on R&D. You shorten patent life, you decrease per-drug profits for the company that develops the drug - increase profit opportunities for the non-developping competitors once the patent runs out. This will push these profit-driven companies towards less R&D - the development of new drugs being specifically what is being made less profiatable. Not only leading to layoffs etc. but more importantly decreasing incentive for the development of necessary new treatments - drugs for rarer diseases for example, may be ignored as a result because few people will use them during the short patent life that the company has. It may also cause companies to raise prices on their newest drugs for the time that they do have patent rights....which makes it so that they are available in theory, but many patients can't afford them. Obvious drawback there and potentially some class/status consequences as well.
U.S. pharmaceutical companies charge different prices for prescription drugs !!?
The question answers itself. If there's government imposed price ceilings in other countries (canada, europe etc.) then drugs there are way cheaper than those sold in the United States. Reimporting those drugs would allow consumers to purchase the exact same drugs at a substantially reduced price without even having to leave the country (US). Drug company profits plummet as a result.
Why are prescription drug prices so high in the U.S. compared to the rest of the world?
Yes, Prescription Drugs cost more in the U.S. than most anywhere else in the world. There are several reasons why prescription drugs are so expensive. Some of the reasons are the high costs for research and development of the drug, marketing and promotion, exclusivity of the drug and drugs for a small number of people. There are following top reasons:High Research and development cost : The Food and Drug Administration generally requires companies to run at least one phase 1 and phase 2 trial, and then requires at least two independent phase 3 trials (except in cases where the drug treats a disease with a high unmet need). So that’s why prescription drugs are more expensive than other countries.Marketing : An analysis from the research company Global Data revealed that 9 out of 10 big pharmaceutical companies spend more on marketing than on research. Although pharmaceutical companies invest a huge amount on research and development, but they spend more money on business development.Branding : Prescription manufacturer, Insurance companies, law maker are tied with a plan and they make the expensive prescription. They have a plan to get the very good profit margin. These things make prescription 3 times more expensive than most of the other countries price.How do we reverse those trends? Yes! You can! There are some things we can take into our own hands and do right away to help lower drug costs.They are :Use generic drugs whenever possible. The cost savings can be considerable.Order your prescription meds via mail order (Online Order) – generics or brand name. You can sometimes save around 40 percent if you order 90-day supplies. Some Online pharmacies offer huge discounts on prescription.Search your medication online from verified pharmacies (i.e: Medsengage etc. )Look for help. Some drug manufacturers offer discount programs if you’re unable to pay using traditional means. For example if you order online and you order value is above the $200, then some online pharmacies offer additional discounts on your order.
Price Discrimination Questions?
1. B 2. C 3. T 4. B 5. B there ya go.
Do you think that the government's anti-drugs campaign is doing more harm than good?
Yes.The goal of the war on drugs was to force certain groups of people out of influence (mostly the anti-war left and Blacks). (Common knowledge)It has been incredibly effective at separating low income men from their families. It has been excellent at creating a cheap workforce (the for-profit prison system). It has been successful at making drugs more powerful and profitable.Most importantly, it has been successful at destroying low-income communities.The intent of the War on Drugs was not to stamp out drug use. Harm reduction is the only way forward if we actually want to end drug abuse.The War on Drugs is costly and ineffective in this respect. Yet successful in it’s original intent to create ghettos, imprison millions, and create a new form of slavery.