Re:I'm only going to say (Score 1)

Regarding the high expense of the US health case system, part of the reason for that is....other nations. The US pays for almost all of the medical R&D that is required to develop a new drug and bring it to market. The US also houses the vast majority of the medical companies that create said drugs.

The reason the US pays for the majority of the R&D costs is the because other nations refuse to help pay for the costs to develop a drug. When a drug company goes to secure exclusivity on the drug they developed, these countries "negotiate" the price way down by threatening not to honor the drug companies patents. Not having the patents honored means generics can be developed before the drug companies ever make back the expensive R&D costs for the drug, let alone any profit. Yes, there is no right to profit but there needs to be some profit potential or no one will create any more drugs.

The reason most of the drugs are developed in the US is because other countries have passed so many laws that it is difficult to develop drugs in other countries.

So, if other countries want to rag on the US about health care costs, how about ponying up and paying your fair share of the R&D costs?

Sorry all if this sound inflammatory, but every time there's a discussion about US health care costs no one mentions these issues. This isn't the sole reason for the US health care system cost, but it is a significant factor and it should be addressed somehow. Frankly, I'm tired of hearing from people in countries outside of the US about how little they pay for drugs when their country is part of the reason the US pays so much more.

Other issues such as HMOs, doctor fees, lawsuits, not for profit drug companies, social health care, etc are issues for another post. :)