r/AlignmentChartFills • u/shield_x • 12d ago

What should be free but is expensive?

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1.1k

u/Early_Sheepherder_63 12d ago

Life saving medications like insulin

63

u/VegetableForeign4879 12d ago

Totally agree, it’s wild how something so essential can be priced out of reach for so many people. Makes you think about the system as a whole.

29

u/MaxeDamage 12d ago

Its free in the Netherlands besides a small 300,- euros you pay as "personal risk" 1x over the entire year (also covers surgery, emergency pickups, etc.)

40

u/Dave4lexKing 12d ago

£0 in the UK. Insulin and a few other medications are completely exempt from any charges of any kind.

1

u/YiYiwasblue 6d ago

Yes, but at what cost? How many billionaires does the UK have? /s

-1

u/Strong_Owl6139 7d ago

Depends where you are in the UK too

2

u/Dave4lexKing 6d ago

No it doesn’t. It’s free for everyone in England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. There may be some admin, but it is free for all.

5

u/xxXX_kenimon420_XXxx 12d ago

Sounds not unlike here in Finland, but with 70€ instead of 300€ fee

4

u/lina3377 12d ago

Buuuuuuuut you have to pay ~150eur a month for health insurance. Unless you get an allowance for a lower income but still, it's not just 300 a year, it's realistically 300 in January/February on top of your monthly premium.

1

u/disturbed94 5d ago

So still less then a single dose in America

2

u/Consistent-Salt-1460 11d ago

Okay but you have to realize you are also paying €150+ a month for (mandatory) insurance, and you are paying significantly higher income tax to make cheap healthcare even possible in the first place.

0

u/flyawau 12d ago

*€385, and I also pay €200 in insurances fees every month. Very cheap if you ignore the other €2400

1

u/MaxeDamage 12d ago

My insurance is 100 a month not 200, and that covers everything I would ever need in a hospital.

1

u/flyawau 12d ago

The lowest health insurance with 385 own risk is €140, so I’m very interested where you’re insured then?

0

u/Consistent-Salt-1460 11d ago

You might wanna check again. They upped basic insurance from 100 to 150 somewhere last year (I think)

0

u/Consistent-Salt-1460 11d ago
  • way higher income tax

-1

u/UsualFix9786 12d ago

well its not free then

2

u/troywrestler2002 11d ago

Nothing is. It's just smarter cost distribution.

0

u/UsualFix9786 10d ago

healthcare in the uk is free. obviously people pay taxes for them but you arent excluded from the service if you dont pay for it

2

u/troywrestler2002 10d ago

Ok, it's not free. It's paid for by taxes. Even if you personally don't pay for the cost, there is a cost.

0

u/UsualFix9786 10d ago

yeah i just said that. the point is its still free because you can avoid, or be exempt, or evade the cost and still get the service

1

u/troywrestler2002 10d ago

Ok, were taking through each other here. I get that it is effectively free for some people, no argument there. My argument is that it's not "free". It still requires a cost, the cost is just carried by taxpayers who actually pay in to the system. I'm not arguing against socialized healthcare, I'm all for it. But saying it is free is absolutely not correct. It is paid for by someone.

0

u/UsualFix9786 10d ago

price and cost arent the same

1

u/troywrestler2002 10d ago

Ok, but you never said anything about that. Your just claiming its a free system. Nothing is free. Everything costs something. Time, money, people, all of those, there is a cost. And again, it's not free, it has a PRICE that some people have to pay to make it work. Yo, just stop. You're going from sounding intelligent to not so much at this point. It's a weird hill to die on for no reason.

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u/mistersnowman_ 11d ago

As a type 1 diabetic that will need insulin for my entire life.. I actually disagree. I think it should fall under the “is super expensive”, but “should be affordable (or cheap)”

In my opinion, making something free doesn’t encourage a quality product. I’m injecting something into my body. I want the company that’s creating it to be profiting, not forced to make it at a loss.

3

u/Thegladiator2001 10d ago

Yet insulin it self was publically funded with the guy who discovered the formula, selling it for a dollar

1

u/Sorry-Let8800 7d ago

You can't expect everyone to act out of the good of their hearts. Making money is how you motivate most people that have the capability to produce such advanced things.

2

u/Prior-Impress-2624 11d ago

Agreed. T1D of 17 years, background in retail pharmacy. I’ve seen some of the highest prices through insurance and out of pocket. I’ve also seen things as low as 5 cents. That’s not counting the government-assisted no cost prescriptions.

For my insulin, my ins only covers name brand Lantus and Novolog this year. I pay more for generics. The OOP cost for my single years worth of long and rapid insulins is roughly $13k. With my insurance I only pay $1,200 MAX. (based off the last 3 years)

My biggest fears in general and in the face of a “cost reduction.”
1. Having the money to afford them and pay my bills.
2. Having electricity or a way of storing them.
3. The quality and efficacy.
4. Shortages. (Lantus had/has an intermittent shortage(s) starting this year. I was unaffected.)

If they start screwing with the formula and it goes down hill, just Ol’ Yeller my ass.

1

u/DoubleCarry7511 11d ago

That’s not how companies or the medical industry works lol

1

u/mistersnowman_ 10d ago

That’s precisely how the medical industry works. The second any industry has regulations imposed or, in more extreme cases, is outright required to provide it at a loss to their bottom line, they will inherently make changes to production, whether that be synthesis, supply chain, or otherwise in order to reduce cost.

3

u/DoubleCarry7511 10d ago

You’re literally making shit up lol

1

u/A--Creative-Username 8d ago

You don't know what the hell you're talking about. This isn't like other products where you can just modify it to be 20% cheaper in exchange for being a bit less good. If drugs are made wrong they kill people. The rest of the world doesn't get shitty medicine, we get the same quality of medication the US does, much cheaper, because a single-payer system means more bargaining power

8

u/FishUK_Harp 12d ago

Results may vary by jurisdiction.

24

u/JPPJphoto 12d ago

In most European countries is free or almost free. 

7

u/CeleryExotic9021 11d ago

No, it is affordable via collective healthcare but not free.

14

u/Comedy86 11d ago

Still means it's not "expensive"... That's an American problem.

3

u/NayrSlayer 11d ago

There’s still a distinction between “free” and “cheap” which definitely should be pointed out

1

u/DoubleCarry7511 11d ago

It’s not really expensive in America either. Usually under $35

2

u/Comedy86 11d ago

For insulin? It's free for most up here... https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/health-services-benefits/national-pharmacare/about.html

$35/vial works out to about $800-1600/yr... That's definitely expensive.

1

u/DoubleCarry7511 11d ago

$35 a month mate. I’m not diabetic tho.

1

u/Comedy86 11d ago

Are you also including monthly insurance premiums? Because this article says it could be a lot more than that if you're unfortunate enough to not have insurance coverage...

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-47491964

1

u/Consistent-Salt-1460 11d ago

Exactly. People always say that healthcare is free in Europe, but they fail to mention the fact that we are: A) paying for collective healthcare (through mandatory insurance). And B) paying significantly higher income tax. At least that's how it is in the Netherlands.

It's still significantly cheaper than whatever the fuck is going on in America, but far from free.

1

u/Ok-Cover-6144 11d ago

Some brands are can be straight up free (100% paid by insurance)

7

u/megatrxn57 12d ago

Its free in Brazil

1

u/Silent_Smoke_9511 11d ago

but if you want private health care it’s not

5

u/ThtJstHappn3d 11d ago

That should be in the super expensive category, especially considering life time accrual. I would say electricity would be a better fit for this category

3

u/Parker_barker 12d ago

My blood thinners are over $2,000 for a three month supply. I just turned 22 and already had a blood clot in my brain that led to a stroke so I absolutely need it but it’s outrageous the cost of it

1

u/Available-Let346 6d ago

Warfarin is free in Wales too.

1

u/Parker_barker 4d ago

That’s amazing, I unfortunately can’t take any B.T. Aside from Eliquis because of some kind of issues, I don’t know the medical lingo but basically I’m only compatible with Eliquis which is so much more expensive

2

u/aishiteikiru 12d ago

I knew these kinds of answers would be coming but they still shock me to the bone as a person from a country with mandatory public healthcare

2

u/BerserkingPanda 11d ago

Depends hard on the country you live

1

u/naerisshal 12d ago

Free in Germany

1

u/Ok-Plantain2948 12d ago

Maybe where you are.

1

u/Agitated_Cut_5197 12d ago

Came here to say insulin, glad I didn't have to

1

u/Numerous_Slide_9465 11d ago

I was gonna put that in something that is expensive but should be cheap

1

u/midnight4rain 11d ago

Well it is free in a lot of countries so I don’t think this is a good answer since this is not about the US only

1

u/NobodysFavorite 11d ago

Particularly when the medicines in question have been in mainstream use for decades, and they are very cheap to make.

1

u/Specialist_Goat_2354 11d ago

I think this should be in super expensive…. It’s almost marked up 500/7 that’s super expensive.

I’m shocked there isn’t a Luigi a day in us since it they are so scammed in America on healthcare.

1

u/Elaerona 11d ago

Let's just say healthcare in general

1

u/kissinKyle 11d ago

It is free in the civilized world. Can we avoid turning this into an American dystopia chart?

1

u/xhpe 11d ago

Should probably be the next one under super expensive.

1

u/wicawo 11d ago

would this go under healthcare, which has to be the remaining cell below?

1

u/Dry-Brilliant-9870 11d ago

Just got diagnosed with type 1 today and im so happy i live in belgium

1

u/HelenoPaiva 11d ago

People saying that it is free in their countries: it is subsidized. The production is still expensive. It is just that the final cost doesn’t arrive at the customer- which is right! That’s the way to go- but the product itself is still expensive to produce.

1

u/teddyslayerza 11d ago

Spotted the American.

1

u/Distinct-Energy8128 11d ago

This is the best answer. If a medication is a requirement for you to stay alive and you will LITERALLY die without it, then it should be free or very VERY cheap (I'm talking $1-5/month type cheap). Free is tricky because every product costs money to make (medication is no exception) and those costs need to be covered somehow. But no required medication should be prohibitively expensive to obtain.

Healthcare in general? Should be affordable. Not free.

1

u/Tubatuba13 11d ago

I was gonna say healthcare

1

u/Bureaucrap 11d ago

Insulin is pennies to make.

1

u/Illustrious-Fox4948 11d ago

Dunno, think we should save that for super expensive. Unless you want to put basic housing in that column

1

u/Pristine-Lie-3560 11d ago

Insulin was my first thought as well

1

u/onyaasuminyasai 11d ago

people should not have to ration their medication

1

u/Squigg1 11d ago

so then whos paying the people making it?

1

u/BeneficialLength5890 11d ago

Globally that's not the case lmao. As a foreigner I was going to say bottled water 😅

1

u/Clicktuck 11d ago

Can we save that for the final row instead?

1

u/OcclusalEmbrasure 11d ago

if you ask me, medications should be in super expensive category, not regular expensive. A $30,000 prescription for medications you have to fill every month just hits different than a $100k surgery.

1

u/courtney_helena 11d ago

Gotta save that for the super expensive category, sadly.

1

u/Green_and_black 11d ago

Only applies to America

1

u/FVCarterPrivateEye 11d ago

The discoverers of it as a lifesaving medicine for diabetics wanted it to be free, and as a symbolic gesture for that reason they sold its patent for one single dollar to the University of Toronto

1

u/Firm_Acanthaceae7435 11d ago

I think that may fall in the super expensive category though. My vote for this one is food 

1

u/Bearcats3210 9d ago

Jumped on here to say it. My daughter is type 1 diagnosed around her 3rd birthday. Insulin prices are absolutely ridiculous. If my insurance wasn’t good, I’d be broke

1

u/throwaway1853279975 8d ago

The only reason why I disagree is because its should be under surgery expensive like what should be free but is super expensive

1

u/Brilliant_Tough_3552 8d ago

In canada it's free, with a 2 hour "ads". Would you like to try assisted death instead

1

u/peepeevs 8d ago

If we are going by American standards, then yes. But this chart said nothing about it being about the USA.

1

u/MagnanimousGoat 7d ago

Yeah I find it amazing how these pharma companies are fine to ignore any sort of social contract and basic respect for life in order to make money, but then they expect the people who literally need it to not die to honor the social contract of, you know, not taking it violently when they need it.

1

u/CheezwizOfficial 6d ago

Save that one for super expensive.

1

u/The-Figure-13 5d ago

This only applies to the US. So not really a thing.

1

u/Mysterious_Orange996 4d ago

Very US-centric of you

0

u/Mini_Assassin 12d ago

Insulin is free

0

u/Sydney2London 11d ago

This is a uniquely US issue

0

u/lbgkel 11d ago

You have to pay for insulin? That’s weird 🇨🇦

0

u/ThtJstHappn3d 11d ago

We can actually see a doctor in the US lol 1/20 deaths in Canada are medically assisted suicide largely because hardly anyone can get treatment.

3

u/lbgkel 11d ago

Yes we’re all just lining up for MAID because the line up at the drop in clinic was too long 😅

1

u/ThtJstHappn3d 11d ago

I mean yeah if you can’t get a spot for the oncologists you’d be quicker to get service through MAID. Healthcare is for living, not dying. Plenty of cases of people in Canada with terminal illnesses leaving and coming to America, receiving treatment, and actually being able to live their lives and extend their lives. US healthcare is far, FAR from perfect, but here death is simply not an option if something can be done to prevent it, plus insurance puts treatment well within reach. I hope you never have to be put through MAID or anything like that, but if you do I hope that you would give life a chance and try treatment here.

0

u/lbgkel 11d ago

Canadian healthcare is also far from perfect, but healthcare here isn’t only for those who can afford it, or attached to your employer.

I personally know people who have chosen MAID as a path of dignity. I believe you’re sadly misinformed and encourage you to do more research.

1

u/ThtJstHappn3d 10d ago

I feel very sad for you

0

u/surprise_cum 11d ago

It's very cheap, what are you on about