The US Moves closer to NZ's Pharmac Model as its Medicare Health System starts negotiating drug prices with Pharmaceutical companies

The Biden administration has announced that the US government's Medicare public health program is negotiating discounts with pharmaceutical companies on 10 drugs. The discounts will range from 38% to 79% when the negotiated prices take effect in 2026. The bargaining will save Medicare $6 billion per annum, according to the Department of Health & Human Services. When a large buyer purchases from many competing sellers, it can often get a lower price. Economists call it "monopsony" power. (By contrast, "monopoly" power, which can be illegal, occurs when a big seller - not buyer - affects the going price). Pharmac runs this model in NZ - it's a good feature of our health system. Pharmac just needs to be well-funded & run by competent people who know what are the best drugs to buy.

As for those folks who believe its best not to purchase from the private sector when it comes to health-care (and education) services (which includes NZ's Far Left Labour Opposition Leader, Chris Hipkins) if NZ didn't buy drugs from pharmaceutical companies, then no Kiwi would have access to a single drug or pill. Does Hipkins actually know that fact? I'm not aware that Hipkins or Jacinda Ardern have ever manufactured any product or service at all, let alone the Pfizer (Covid) vaccine, for that matter. More generally, the Pharmac-style model should be applied throughout our health system in the sense that many private (as well as public) sellers should supply our system, with their services funded on behalf of all Kiwis by a government agency. Like the firms that supply Pharmac, the hospitals supplying our health system should compete so the government gets the highest quality product and uses its monopsony power to negotiate a good price. But that's too much common sense for it to ever be adopted by any NZ political party.

Sources:

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/08/29/fact-sheet-biden-harris-administration-announces-first-ten-drugs-selected-for-medicare-price-negotiation/

Has Former PM Ardern Become NZ's Single Biggest Individual Emitter of Greenhouse Gases?

Its impossible to keep up with former PM Ardern's emissions of Greenhouse Gases. Where has she travelled on carbon-dumping-into-the-atmosphere long-haul flights this past year? To name a few, in November 2023, she flew to Singapore to walk the Green Carpet and give 'Earth Shot' awards including in the category of "clean air". How ironic. When you get homesick, how about a round-the-world flight back to good 'ole NZ to marry on location at a vineyard? Yes, in January 2024 it was long-haul to do the wedding in the Hawkes Bay. Then in March 2024 she burnt those air miles to Italy to inaugurate the academic year of the University of Bologna. Oh, and don't forget the carbon dumping flight up to Chicago in August 2024 to visit the Democratic Party Convention for a yarn. And why go to Italy once in a year when you can go there twice on a long-haul jet? To accept another award, this past week she flew to Venice to whoop it up an event coinciding with the Venice Film Festival. She preached there that we must "demand from our leaders .. empathy and kindness". Competence would be a nice one to add, though always seems to be missing off her list. Anyhow, that's just a few flights we know about. We've got no problem with air-travel at this Blog, provided carbon emissions are priced, though we note the US doesn't have an Emissions Trading Scheme like NZ. Maybe that's a reason Ardern is basing herself outside this country, since she would probably single-handedly blow our reduction targets.