Brand-name drug manufacturers appreciate the value of their patents, which give them virtually monopoly pricing power. So, to keep drug prices high, pharmaceutical companies have come up with a...
Diane Archer
Who’s in your social network?
Many of us who care for a relative, partner, friend or neighbor do it without realizing that we are caregivers. And, we often don’t take note of the other people who are providing support to...
What you should know about Graham-Cassidy bill
Senator Mitch McConnell has just conceded defeat for now in his effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act through the Graham-Cassidy bill. The bill, sponsored by Senators Lindsay Graham (SC) and Bill...
New Medicare card in the works
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, CMS, is preparing to release a new Medicare card to better protect people’s identity from theft. If you have Medicare, you should receive your...
Sanders and 15 other Senators introduce Medicare for All bill
As Congressional Republicans continue to seek a vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act, Senator Bernie Sanders and 15 other Senators introduced a Medicare for All bill, providing universal health...
R and D costs do not justify high drug prices
Prescription drugs are increasingly unaffordable largely because Congress has effectively granted pharmaceutical companies the ability to set prices. As a consequence, taxpayers, government and...
More than 1 million await Social Security disability decision
More than 1 million people await a Social Security disability decision, according to an ABC news report. People typically wait nearly two years for a determination. And, some die while waiting. Most...
Kidney voucher program launched and catching on
Fran Kritz of Kaiser News reports on how a retired Superior Court judge, Howard Broadman, came up with a creative idea for gifting a kidney to his grandson. His vision of a kidney voucher program has...
Allergan transfers patents to Native American tribe to quash a...
Drug companies seem always to be coming up with new ways to drive profits. This time, according to Katie Thomas at the New York Times, it’s a quasi patent sale-leaseback agreement, in which...
Pharma opera? Drug promotion on TV shows
In the category of “what will pharmaceutical companies think of next to market their high-priced drugs,” the answer could be drug promotion on TV shows. Once dubbed soap operas because...