Drugs and Treatments in todays capitalist markets

[KanadaHye]

Re: Drugs and Treatments in todays capitalist markets

Though, because of that, it's undeniable as well what you said - by privatizing, they're making money off of us being sick. On the other hand, there's nothing they can do about it. Hence the controversy of President Obama's healthcare plan in the US. Doctors will get paid a lot less because insurance wouldn't exist. That is a lot of jobs lost in itself, but who wants to become a doctor anymore, go through all those 8 years of education (college alone), and wind up getting paid roughly $20 an hour? a paramedic makes slightly more than that.

Welcome to Communism. Enjoy your stay. Capitalists love Communist countries and now that America is under their complete control, they don't have to cater to the people that allowed the spread of dictatorships and communist ideals.

[Tali]

Re: Drugs and Treatments in todays capitalist markets

In addition to it being easier to just "temporarily fix" the symptoms, it's also less costly for everybody. Though it really sucks, it's undeniable that it is far easier to get grants from the government and other sponsors to fund your project if it's shorter than spending the years it'll take to find a cure -- when we really don't even know if there is one.

I'll take your example of asthma.

I have asthma too. I've had it since I was little. Asthma's earliest medicine was developed in order to combat that wheezing nuisance. It wasn't until the 90s that more was known about it - they discovered that inflammatino of our bronchioles is the instigator of our asthma attacks. No one can even conceive of a notion to cure it because no one has the slightest idea as to a possible "why" asthma exists. Not going to get funding to just fumble around and hope to land something.

Though, because of that, it's undeniable as well what you said - by privatizing, they're making money off of us being sick. On the other hand, there's nothing they can do about it. Hence the controversy of President Obama's healthcare plan in the US. Doctors will get paid a lot less because insurance wouldn't exist. That is a lot of jobs lost in itself, but who wants to become a doctor anymore, go through all those 8 years of education (college alone), and wind up getting paid roughly $20 an hour? a paramedic makes slightly more than that.

[KanadaHye]

Re: Drugs and Treatments in todays capitalist markets

I bash liberals and conservatives alike. What one doesn't mess up, the other surely will. It's like a tag team match. Ideally, education for health care should be free to those with the brain power. Also, nursing is more of a vocation or calling, it's not just a 'job'. That would create more doctors and nurses and they wouldn't be over worked. That way you overlap 5-6 nurses working 8 hour shifts instead of 3 nurses working 10-12 hour shifts. That leaves more time for communication and less stress which would result in better thinking and less mistakes.

[Haykakan]

Re: Drugs and Treatments in todays capitalist markets

Insurance companies are indeed the evile spawns of satan. For all your bashing of liberalism i am glad to see that you see some good in nationalized healthcare vs the privatized garbage in the USA.

[KanadaHye]

Re: Drugs and Treatments in todays capitalist markets

Yeah, but the sales tax here is now 13% so the government gets money from that plus now they deduct 300, 600, 900 , 1200 bucks a year from your income depending on which tax bracket you fall into. Basically they tax everyone so much that it's a more even playing field. It's still better than the U.S. in terms of health care costs. Not sure if it's the same in all of the states, but if you work for a company in Michigan., not only do they deduct for healthcare but the car insurance companies even grab more if your health insurance doesn't cover accidents due to auto collisions. I don't blame people for insurance fraud but all insurance companies do is pass the buck onto their customers so suing insurance companies just raises everybody's premiums. Corporate mafia.

[myragnarok]

Re: Drugs and Treatments in todays capitalist markets

Then there is the insurance companies that don't give you the money in the states when you really need it, they always have some sort of excuse. In Canada on the other hand it's mostly free but until the treatment reaches you, or it's your turn in the lineup you might be gone. Of course depending on the disease and the situation. At least the rich don't have an edge , same lineup for everyone, at least I hope so.

[KanadaHye]

Re: Drugs and Treatments in todays capitalist markets

I know this sounds cruel but in reality, the "good people" who run marathons and fund raisers for "cure for cancer" are just giving money to an organization that's created to steal money legally. Why don't they petition for "causes of cancer" awareness and "prevention"?. I hate when they petition me at work asking for money because their kid is doing this or doing that. Then it makes you feel guilty for not donating but you can't explain to them why you don't want to donate so you have to make some other excuse. People shouldn't be conditioned to beg for money. The school systems are the worse for this practice.

[Haykakan]

Re: Drugs and Treatments in todays capitalist markets

There is also incentive to get $$$ for stuff like cure for cancer, and say we still haven't found the cure for it when they might have... you get the point

Hell i didnt even think about that one but you are right and i bet it already happened to. I know a nice lady who is dying from leukimia now and all they have to offer her is one chemo treatment after another. How can it be that with the rate of advancement in science and technology that they havent invented better treatment for this disease in over 60 some years. This is one xxxxed up world we live in i tell ya. Have you seen the stuff the republicans want to get rid of in next years budget? Well lets just say if you get sick and your not a millionair i hope you can find a cure in Israel in the form of a patriot missle cause that is where our money will be.

[myragnarok]

Re: Drugs and Treatments in todays capitalist markets

There is also incentive to get $$$ for stuff like cure for cancer, and say we still haven't found the cure for it when they might have... you get the point

[KanadaHye]

Re: Drugs and Treatments in todays capitalist markets

A pretty cynical view for an advocate of rationality.

Consider this... they have more incentive to come up with a preventative medication because then everyone would take it and that would of course be always be a larger population than those who will be afflicted.

The reality is that we're still learning a lot in medicine. In 50 years, we'll look back and wonder "what the hell were we thinking?!", just as we do now when we look back at the lobotomies of the 50s and the awarding of the Nobel prize to Moniz for inventing the procedure.
We should expect realistic improvement as we strive for a more complete understanding of the body, the environment, the universe, etc

The flaw in your logic is that Capitalism is designed to take money from those who have money. Underneath the system lies a social safety net which takes care of those who fall out of the middle class. So a cure would mean an end to a lifetime of treatment and they would have to be administered to those that have nothing to give in return. A lot of doctors who practice in not so well to do areas of cities make their money from the welfare recipients who constantly come in for treatments for their ailments. This money is paid for by the middle class. A cure would sort of put a wrench in the system so to speak. That's not to say that a cure exists and it's being kept from the public (which is a possibility) but that there is no motivation to find a cure.

In response to lobotomies, the government found that television was just as effective in taming and calming the masses... therefore there was no need to remove the frontal lobe