> Although it dovetails with the well worn narrative on HN, this comparison fails due to the level of care.
The context is purely the model of provision; level of care isn't addressed.
> Second, some of the development of MRI technology happened in Britain. Most was performed in the U.S. Who is paying for the cost of development of this and other new technology and drugs? It's often not the people in places like Canada and France, where government controls hold down prices. Most of the cost of research and development is paid for by Americans. We pay perhaps five times more in the U.S. for some procedures than people in France pay, but the technology might not exist in the first place if we didn't pay this disproportionate share.
This is an interesting point, in that much of the technology is actually developed outside the US, but the very high prices which Americans pay may be funding some of the development. That said, drug companies, for instance, only spend in the region of 12% on research, less than they spend on marketing. This marketing spend is disproportionately targeted at the US, as it's one of the few countries which permits heavy marketing of prescription drugs directly to normal people.
"This marketing spend is disproportionately targeted at the US, as it's one of the few countries which permits heavy marketing of prescription drugs directly to normal people."
By few, you mean two, soon to be one. The US and New Zealand, and New Zealand has passed legislation to phase it out.
The US will be the only country in the world where you can be advised of your potential need for a prescription drug not by a medical professional, but by an actor on a television screen.
The context is purely the model of provision; level of care isn't addressed.
> Second, some of the development of MRI technology happened in Britain. Most was performed in the U.S. Who is paying for the cost of development of this and other new technology and drugs? It's often not the people in places like Canada and France, where government controls hold down prices. Most of the cost of research and development is paid for by Americans. We pay perhaps five times more in the U.S. for some procedures than people in France pay, but the technology might not exist in the first place if we didn't pay this disproportionate share.
This is an interesting point, in that much of the technology is actually developed outside the US, but the very high prices which Americans pay may be funding some of the development. That said, drug companies, for instance, only spend in the region of 12% on research, less than they spend on marketing. This marketing spend is disproportionately targeted at the US, as it's one of the few countries which permits heavy marketing of prescription drugs directly to normal people.