The world’s other health-care systems survive only because they receive a massive and ongoing, but hidden, subsidy courtesy of the inefficient U.S. system. Two unique features of our arrangement — the absence of price controls and the profit drive of doctors and hospitals — allow other countries to transfer the risk and cost of medical innovation to Americans.
the entire article is saying that Americans spending a shit ton on healthcare is providing R&D for private pharma corps. Completely ignoring that pharma corps do very often rely on public research and doesn’t even consider that it can all be handled by the state something something capitalist realism.
its expected of course because
David Goldhill is the chief executive of SesameCare.com, a digital marketplace for discounted health services.
The site is selling healthcare like Amazon Prime subscription lol.
The co-founder’s bio
Everything Michael has done in his career has led to the Sesame moment, where his role is to oversee all sales, partnerships and clinician relationships. Michael spent five years at McKinsey & Co [McKinsey has been the subject of significant controversy related to its business practices. Among other things, the company has been criticized for its role promoting OxyContin use during the opioid crisis in North America], leading multi-million-dollar projects to find solutions to healthcare’s biggest problems: pricing; quality measurement; catalyzing competition in the U.S. and abroad to drive better results. Michael received his PhD in Health Economics and Policy from Harvard and has advised The White House Office of Management and Budget, Brookings Institution and the State of Massachusetts on health reform legislation and implementation.
All mayo, not even a token non-white person:
:npc: the absence of price controls and the profit drive of doctors and hospitals — allow other countries to transfer the risk and cost of medical innovation to Americans
“What about all the medical progress that Cuba has achieved?”
:npc: …
:npc-upset:
This makes absolutely zero economic sense.
There are shitloads of other healthcare systems that are profit-driven, they make a profit but it is mitigated by state intervention to stop it turning into the US.
If it is possible for companies operating elsewhere to make a profit at those prices it is possible in the US.
Price controls in other countries doesn’t increase the cost of care in the same ways that price controls on rent doesn’t increase rent in the surrounding areas. It will decrease the amount of ‘innovation’ in the same way that price controls would make apartment builders hesitant to build housing in price controlled areas. But a lot of medical innovation is funded by grants of various governments (the subsidy) so it’s less likely and Americans aren’t exclusively bearing the burden of this cost.
The innovation? How much sawdust can you put into the insulin before someone notices?
