1y ago

'Positive Step,' Says Sanders After AstraZeneca Agrees to Cap Inhalers at $35

www.commondreams.org

25 comments

So, they’re still profitable at 35.
Something to think about.
- Yes, you should think about the poor owners who now can't afford two solid gold toilets on their yacht and have to make due with one gold one and one silver one.
  But, no, you lucky asthmatics just think "oh god I can't breathe where's my inhaler" like a bunch of selfish jerks.
  
  I take a perverse delight in knowing that gold is actually a shitty material for a toilet.
  Because gold is relatively dense, and has a remarkably high thermal conductivity... well, this is why rings usually always feel cool to the touch even when you've been wearing them for a while. Does anybody like sitting on a cold toilet? cuz that toilet is never not going to be cold.
- They would still be profitable at $5 most likely.
  They always argue that the added cost covers the R&D.
$10.99 AUD in Australia, ~ $7.20 USD.
Americans are still getting ripped off at the new price point.
https://www.chemistwarehouse.com.au/buy/108482/ventolin-cfc-free-100mcg-asthma-inhaler-with-dose-counter-200-salbutamol-s3
- This idea took my breath away
Forcing this company to lower their prices so more People can live is SOCIALISM!
-Fiscally Responsible Pro Life Republicans.
Astrazeneca Symbicort Turbuhaler, imported to my country, after taxes and everything, sold for $10 (60 doses) and $20 (120 doses) (current exchange rate). Cheaper alternative also available.
And they "capped" it in America for $35. I wonder how much it's cost before the "cap", ridiculous.
- If this is the purple one I think I'm paying 250 per 120 puffs until the premium is reached.
  We have to fund the pharma execs some how, their yachts have gone up in price too.
- We were charging 400 for an Epipen...
  
  Last time I had to buy epipens, about 8 months ago or so, they were still $120. That still seems absurd to me. I am fortunate that my dog's insurance is better than most people's and I only paid $11 for them. In comparison, my vet could give me a half dozen syringes of epinephrine for about $15. The markup on epipens is crazy considering it's literally urgent life saving medication.
I pay 1/12th of that in my third world "shithole" country
- Honestly, with all the "shit show" in America, my "shithole" 3rd world country doesn't seem so bad anymore.
  At the very least, we got affordable healthcare, low cost education, and no gun violent.
  
  The new American Dream is to GTFO.
I'll take $35/mo cash to tell Blue Cross BlueShield where to shove their prior-auths on decades old drugs with generics.
This is just about patient copays, right? And AZN still gets to charge patients' insurance as much as they can get away with?
But how is my money supposed to trickle down to me if it’s not in the hands of the few? :( now I just have all this money… and affordable inhalers!
So they can disagree to the cap any time they feel like it?

25 comments