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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Thomas A Watson who wrote (495702)	11/19/2003 9:54:00 PM
From: Joel Karlinsky	Respond to of 769670

Hey big shot, exactly what drugs are you talking about? To my knowledge, there are very few drugs that prevent the onset of illness. Are there drugs that prevent hypertension, diabetes, cancer, congestive heart failure, pneumonia, or emphysema? I don't think so. There are drugs that treat these conditions once they occur. Prevention takes the form of diet, exercise, and through vaccinations, which are relatively cheap. As we age, we develop the above conditions, and many others, and we need drugs, some of which are quite expensive to treat them. When you're twenty-five, and in good health, you're probably not taking any legal drugs; but if you make it to 75, you might be on multiple drugs. Which cost big time. And if your condition is controlled you will live longer, and require even more drugs. Where expensive drugs save money, is when they keep your particular condition(s) compensated and you out of the hospital. Hospital stays really cost. There is a whole literature on this topic: it's called cost-effectiveness, but a lot of it is bogus, because it relies on estimates of QUALYS = quality of life years, measured in terms of dollars. Maybe the government should come up with a diet and exercise benefit, you know, pay for health club memberships and low-fat food. Or maybe we should outlaw cigarettes, which would really help with disease prevention and save $$$$$. Wow, what a great idea.