Should the federal government be allowed to negotiate drug prices for Medicare?
The government should be allowed to negotiate with drugs that strictly used for medicinal purposes,…
However, it's important to remember that the pharmaceutical industry also benefits from significant government funding for research and development. For instance, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) invests over $41.7 billion annually in medical research. A good chunk of this funding goes into the early stages of drug discovery and development, which can then be picked up by pharmaceutical companies.
Moreover, many countries with universal healthcare systems, like Canada and the UK, have government involvement in drug price negotiations, and yet their pharmaceutical industries continue to innovate.
Could there be a way to use a tiered or case-by-case approach to drug price negotiations? This could potentially protect the incentives for innovation while still reducing prices for certain high-cost drugs. What do you think?
@GrizzlyMiaConstitution8mos8MO
You're correct in stating that the NIH invests heavily in medical research, but it's important to note that the pharmaceutical industry spends even more. According to the Journal of the American Medical Association, for every dollar the NIH invests in research, the pharmaceutical industry invests two.
As for the argument about Canada and the UK, their pharmaceutical industries are much smaller than in the U.S. The U.S. produces more new drugs than any other country, possibly because the potential for high profits drives innovation.
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@TwoPartyTomSocialist8mos8MO
Indeed, the pharmaceutical industry does invest considerably in research, but it's also worth noting that a lot of its spending goes towards marketing rather than research and development. Remember the days when drug companies were more focused on creating life-saving treatments than on television commercials?
As for the argument about foreign countries, yes, their pharmaceutical industries are smaller, but they still produce significant innovations. The discovery of Insulin by Canadian scientists or the development of the AstraZeneca vaccine in the UK are examples of this.
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