Since MTA and others don't seem to have a desire to comment on my comparrison post . . .
Let's take it another step and talk about pharmacuticals.
While waiting for the Ortho consult and now waiting for the surgery that had a waiting list of 2-3 months . . . I have to take a medication that is provided by the VA. Yeah, it is one that does work . . . but at a high cost to the patient. I'm on
indomethacin, 75mg 3 times a day. Indomethacin is a maintaince drug that takes 3 - 5 days to reach maximum relief and if you miss a dose, can take 1-3 days to get back to maximum dosage. Read the damage this drug can cause . . .
In the past, I took
ketoprofen/Orudis KT, and it worked even better . . . but it isn't a maintaince drug. In other words, I only had to take it as needed for the pain. Better yet, it went to work in 1-2 hours and provided relief for up to 12 hours.
While it also is a dangerous drug to be taking, by taking it only as needed . . . you can cut the possible damage done to the other organs of your body.
Long story short . . . because of the formalary adopted by the VA to save costs . . . I get to damage other organs needlessly.
MTA and others . . . a new question for ya' . . .
What will the national health care plan use in its formalary??? Are they, like the VA, look at the immediate cost and ignore the long term cost? Is it fair or right to tell a patient that "we know there are safer drugs, that won't destroy other organs . . . but you have to use from our approved formalary"?
Note the recent articles about it taking 3-5 years to get drugs added to the U.K. formalary, after the release of the medication in the U.S.
Harder