PILLAGE

HOW PILL MAKERS PILLAGE THE PUBLIC

Look at the facts:

  1. Drug prices cause more medical overspending in the US than anything else.
  2. Drug makers say they need to spend more on research than other companies do.
  3. Most drug makers have profitabilities of over 20% (at end of 2017).
  4. Most drug makers spend more on marketing than research.
  5. Former drug maker executives say that drug prices don't depend in research costs.

Look at the reasons:

  1. Monopolies derived from patents and copyrights are the major reason drug prices are high.
  2. Drug companies get 25 years of monopoly pricing to "recover research costs".
    This is the main cause of the pillage!
  3. FDA marketing exclusivity rules add to this trouble.
  4. Since only a finite number of patients need each lifesaving drug:
     - The demand curve is flat,
     - The companies can charge as much as they want to charge, and
     - The maximum profit point is the price where customers start skipping the drug for price reasons.
  5. Drug companies often prefer profits over better health.

Government is the reason drug prices are high. Democrats love intellectual property.

The high drug prices cause the following problems:

  1. High drug costs mean many patients aren't getting the medicine they need.
  2. High drug costs mean high insurance premiums.
  3. High drug costs mean drug theft and black markets.

How to cure the problem:

  1. Require compulsory licensing for all medical patents and copyrights.
  2. Limit royalties to a small percentage of the sale price.
  3. Remove all politicians who favor monopoly powers for drug makers.
  4. Prohibit cartels in all medical fields.
  5. Tax profits that are above twice the cost to make the same amount of drug.

EXCESS PROFIT TAX: Fill out one column for each lifesaving or chronic disease drug:

1 Set
 Price
 		 Actual price for one lifesaving set of doses
or a one year set of chronic disease doses:		 (ex 1)
$200.00		 a1
______		b1
______		 c1
______		d1
______		 e1
______		f1
______
2 Set
 Cost
 		 Actual cost to make one lifesaving set of doses
or a one year set of chronic disease doses:		 (ex 2)
$20.00		 a2
______		b2
______		 c2
______		d2
______		 e2
______		f2
______
3 Set
 Profit
 		 Subtract line 2 from line 1 in each column.
If result is less than zero, enter zero:		 (ex 3)
$180.00		 a3
______		b3
______		 c3
______		d3
______		 e3
______		f3
______
4 Allowed
 Set
 Price		 Multiply line 2 by 3.0: (ex 4)
$60.00		 a4
______		b4
______		 c4
______		d4
______		 e4
______		f4
______
5 Excess
 Set
 Profit		 Subtract line 4 from line 1.
If result is less than zero, enter zero:		 (ex 5)
$140.00		 a5
______		b5
______		 c5
______		d5
______		 e5
______		f5
______
6 Total
 Sets
 Sold		 Total number of sets of doses sold or years
of doses sold (same units as line 2):		 (ex 6)
4205		 a6
______		b6
______		 c6
______		d6
______		 e6
______		f6
______
7 Total
 Excess
 Profit		 Multiply line 5 by line 6: (ex 7)
$588700.00		 a7
______		b7
______		 c7
______		d7
______		 e7
______		f7
______
8 Excess
 Profit
 Tax		 Multiply line 7 by .95: (ex 8)
$559265.00		 a8
______		b8
______		 c8
______		d8
______		 e8
______		f8
______
9 Grand
 Tax
 Total		 Add lines a8 through f8
(do not add in ex 8):		  
 		 9
______
  1. Collect the Excess Profit Tax on sales of each lifesaving medicine that
     - Needs one or a set number of doses to cure the disease
     - Needs a continuous supply of drug to prevent death.
  2. The tax revenue shall be used to pay for medical bills people can't afford.

Stop the needless pillage of pill buyers.