The page shows a bunch of headlines - which one?

I did see the one about drug prices taking a jump. Sad sad sad

Just don't send your outrageous drug prices to Canada, ok??

I have seen a couple of the drugs I take go up from $40 to $500 over the last two years. My antimalarial hydroxyclorequine is one of them, luckily I have a doctor friend that introduced me to his pharmacist, he is giving me the drug for wholesale price, turns out there is quite a mark up at the pharmacy! Costco wanted $500 a month for the drug, I am getting 3 months worth for a little less then one month... Stelara is $4,000 wholsale and $8,000 per shot at the pharmacy, might be why my Rheumy wants to give the shot, so she can make a couple thousand... I am going to get assistance from the drug company, they will give it to me for free...

Costs will definitely influence my medication decisions. I am at the beginning of this journey and have a lot to learn, but I've already decided I won't bankrupt my family with healthcare costs. I will make the best chances I can and if it means costs like I'm seeing, the meds won't be part of my treatment. That's just what I've decided is best for me.

I feel angry that people have to pay these prices or they don't get treatment. I've had to purchase meds from Canada in the past because of some stink in the US when all drug manufacturers were backordered at the same time. So much for healthcare reform. Sorry for ranting but this kind of thing frustrates me.

My Humira has gone up every month for the past year. A year ago it was $2400 - now $3800.

As the list of meds covered under insurance shrinks. My list of covered meds is shorter every year. On top of that obtaining meds that are covered requires jumping through hoops.
No one wins in these situations.
We need some protection from price gauging.
We appear to be the only country without any form of consumer protection. With that said I realize it's a political game & gain.
Sammy

I just seen on the news a couple of days ago about the cost of insulin. In the last 10 years it's went from $250.00 to 700.00.....ugh

I wonder if maybe the drug companies believe some form of gov't regulation will come soon, and they are trying to raise the prices as much as they can before price raises become regulated. It reminds me of the jump in credit card interest and the other credit hijinks the credit card companies did right before strict regulations went into effect. Of course, it's the price raises that are a major part of why there is a call for regulation in the first place.

I want to add that I think healthcare should not be a business. That's the real source of U.S. healthcare costs being out of control. Business' goal is profit first.

LadyJane3, you nailed it. Productivity is an "economic good" for our country and society just like clean water and sewage. We are on the path toward healthcare (obviously including pharma) being looked upon in the same manner but it is such a massive profit center currently that we will not see major change, IMO, until the cost burden of the aging demographic group of Boomers overwhelms the system forcing it or until the end (death) of the boomers and the profit centers decline so dramatically that what's left naturally folds into an "economic good" for society. Capitalism is the best economic system to motivate individuals into productivity but it has points of diminishing return where it is causing lessened productivity generally because it evolves into monopolistic practices as we currently see in insurance and pharmaceuticals (along with banking, energy and telecommunications). If you want to be an econ wonk go to the American Enterprise Institute (very free market, Libertarian group) web site and look up the "4 things to kill Capitalism" and monopolies is listed as one of the four. Sorry for the rant.......we'll get this fixed eventually but in the meantime like buddhacat stated above, "Big pharma has screwed (is screwing) us BIG time.