[Marxism] The Worst Medical System in the Industrialized World

["Tony Abdo" <gojack10@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

excerpts from, 'The $200 Billion Colossus'...

<<Perhaps the most quoted source of statistics on the pharmaceutical
industry, IMS Health, estimated total worldwide sales for prescription drugs
to be about $400 billion in 2002. About half were in the United States. So
the $200 billion colossus is really a $400 billion megacolossus, but my
focus in this book will be mainly on how the drug companies operate in the
United States.>>

<<In 2002, as the economic downturn continued, big pharma showed only a
slight drop in profits ? from 18.5 to 17.0 percent of sales. The most
startling fact about 2002 is that the combined profits for the ten drug
companies in the Fortune 500 ($35.9 billion) were more than the profits for
all the other 490 businesses put together ($33.7 billion). In 2003, profits
of the Fortune 500 drug companies dropped to 14.3 percent of sales, still
well above the median for all industries of 4.6 percent for the year. When I
say this is a profitable industry, I mean really profitable. It is difficult
to conceive of how awash in money big pharma is.>>

more from Marcia Angell's book at... http://alternet.org/envirohealth/19540/

also...
Published on Wednesday, August 11, 2004 by the Baltimore Sun
Health Care System Leaves Poor to Suffer
by Ariel R. Frank Green

I UNWRAPPED the blood pressure cuff from the man's arm and took the
stethoscope out of my ears. "140 over 100," I said. "Has it ever been that
high before?"

"It's always like that," said the patient, a polite, 47-year-old
professional driver who had come to the outreach center for a hot lunch and
health screening and preferred anonymity. "I'm supposed to take medication,
but I don't have insurance. And I'm worried I'll lose my job if they find
out about my blood pressure."

The nurse I was shadowing that afternoon suggested the man visit a free
clinic that could give him blood pressure medications from its collection of
samples. It was a far cry from comprehensive health care, but it was all she
could do.

I encountered similar stories every day as an intern with the Soros Service
Program for Community Health in Baltimore. My fellow medical students and I
learned from doctors and nurses who work with low-income Baltimore
residents, and we interviewed clients at outreach centers and free clinics
for the Baltimore Safety Net Access-to-Care Survey, which was released
Thursday.

Among the 260 people we surveyed for this annual report card of community
health indicators, nearly 80 percent have chronic diseases such as high
blood pressure, arthritis and asthma. More than half have chronic
psychiatric problems, mostly depression. Yet 54 percent have overdue medical
bills, and the cost of care frequently prevents them from getting help.
Forty percent of those who lacked health insurance said they stopped taking
medications or going to the doctor as a result. With poor health and poor
credit, they can do little to improve their lives.

But the statistics tell only part of the story. Because I was training to be
a doctor, the people I met allowed me a view into the most private details
of their lives. I began to see them as neighbors....

full article at http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0811-05.htm

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