News of Prescription Drug Shortages – And Why Republicans Won’t Help

That’s What The Economist Magazine Says

The Dismal Political Economist is in fine health, thank you for asking, so he is not familiar with many issues in modern medicine.  Thus he was unpleasantly surprised to learn in reading The Economist weekly magazine that there is a shortage of some prescription drugs in the United States. 

"FOSCARNET, potassium phosphate, kanamycin sulphate—for healthy people, these names are a meaningless garble. For the sick, the list is a nightmare. In 2004 America had a shortage of 58 drugs. Last year it had 211 and this year 198 so far. As the problem has spread, so too has a sense of panic, with patients lacking essential medicines, doctors fretting over alternatives and hospitals navigating a “grey market” for drugs."

Now The Dismal Political Economist is a regular reader of internationally based publications like The Economist and the Financial Times.  This is  because the news as reported in those publications does not have the prejudice of U. S. publications, almost all of which feel the need to pander to some degree to their American readers, lest they offend them. They cannot be even mildly critical of Conservative positions, lest they have Conservatives invoke the "biased media" charge.

The article in The Economist documents the reasons for this shortage, and then talks about one solution to the problem. BUT.

"Congress could also give more cash and authority to the FDA, which now has just four staff working feverishly to ease the shortages. But Republicans would resist."

No further explanation is given as to why Republicans would resist increasing that already huge staff of four people working on a major health problem.  The Dismal Political Economists has some possible explanations as to what those reasons might be.

1. Spending more government money to enable a sufficient supply of prescription drugs would mean less money for tax cuts for the wealthy, who if they need drugs can always get them.

2. Alleviating the shortages might result in lower prices and lower profits for drug companies.

3. Adding more resources to help sick people would violate the Republican principle that sick people deserve their illnesses for being bad people.

4. Providing an adequate supply of drugs is not related to government activities. There is nothing in the Constitution about prescription drugs.

5. Finding a greater supply of prescription drugs would encourage more illegal immigration.  Today illegal immigrants are deterred by knowing they will not get cheap prescription drugs in the U. S. and for this reason Republicans want higher, not lower prescription drug pricing.

6. Taking action to fix the problem might make the Obama administration look good, and that is just too big a price to pay to help seriously ill citizens.

Not sure which answer to pick, take them all and you won’t be far off the mark.

Besides, according to the article there are perfectly good no cost solutions to the problem



They Didn't Get the Warning Letter!



"Eight times in the past two years the agency has allowed the import of drugs unapproved in America but used safely elsewhere. Some drugs with minor quality problems, meanwhile, are being shipped to pharmacies with warning letters."