Doctor tells patient he doesn't have long to live through video screen

Re:Doctor tells patient he doesn't have long to live through... by StudentStuff on Friday March 08, 2019 @03:13PM (#19341723)

Note that rich white people witholding medical care =/= white people. It is a huge distinction, and seemingly refers to how more and more treatments and cures are being priced to extract the most money possible, heavily restricting who has access.

Hepatitis C is curable, but it is purposefully priced out of reach for much of the affected population, hoping that the local government will pick up the tab. Epi Pens have skyrocketed in price over the past few years, and the manufacturer that makes them has claimed that there is a shortage of the generic version, while plentiful supplies of the on brand version.

This is Late Stage Capitalism.

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Re:Doctor tells patient he doesn't have long to live through... by zaroth on Friday March 08, 2019 @04:31PM (#19342387)

Purposefully priced?

Gilead did pay $11 billion to acquire Pharmasset and at one point was facing a $2.5 billion patent infringement ruling (later overturned) for that same drug.

AbbVie’s a new entrant which can treat certain strains at at about a third the cost.

Damn that Late Stage Capitalism developing a miracle cure for Hep C which is painless and effective.

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Re:Doctor tells patient he doesn't have long to live through... by Pharmakon on Friday March 08, 2019 @10:32PM (#19344271)

This is the same AbbVie who’s treatment costs $26,000 right? I think it’s fair to say that’s priced well out of reach for most people, whatever the cost relative to Gilead’s product, which the CEO apologized for. The same AbbVie that sued the NHS? https://outline.com/brsHyA Incidentally Gilead made $5.8 billion in a single quarter so I think we can safely assume they managed to defray the cost of acquiring Pharmasset, don’t you think?

Companies making tens of billions a year while poor people suffer and die does seem to be a fairly negative situation, however you care to label it.

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Re:Doctor tells patient he doesn't have long to live through... by RugnirViking on Saturday March 09, 2019 @08:39AM (#19346036)

I simply refuse to believe that treatments that cost the same as a brand new luxury car are down to labour + materials cost of some pills.

There are absurdly massive inefficiencies if as you say they aren't making profits.

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