More and more states are joining a major lawsuit to hold the makers of Insulin liable for price gouging American consumers for decades. These lawsuits could force the companies to pay up big time for scamming the public.

  • §ɦṛɛɗɗịɛ ßịⱺ𝔩ⱺɠịᵴŧ@lemmy.mlOP
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    6 months ago

    The two scientists responsible for producing the insulin we use today each took $0.50 for the discovery. Probably due to them being human and seeing the first patient given the drug basically spring to life by the time the last patient was given a dose. Too bad most are blinded by forever chasing a dollar these days.

    Edit: I’ve been a lifetime diabetic and seen some of the most amazing people die long painful deaths due to insulin’s unaffordability through the 90s and into the 2000s. While it’s amazing to see more states caping the price, it wasn’t always that way and FUCK these scum.

        • hedgehog@ttrpg.network
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          6 months ago

          And acting like they were the only people responsible diminishes the achievements of everyone involved since.

          • §ɦṛɛɗɗịɛ ßịⱺ𝔩ⱺɠịᵴŧ@lemmy.mlOP
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            6 months ago

            Are you arguing the folks who’ve made tweaks to the molecule deserve soo much money that some patients can’t afford it? Cause when it first came out and was seen as a miracle, it was easily accessible.

            • hedgehog@ttrpg.network
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              6 months ago

              No, I’m not arguing that. I’m saying that you’re being willfully ignorant by acting like insulin in the 1920s and insulin in the 2020s is the same thing.

              It doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing circle jerk. And lying about the issues people face doesn’t make those issues somehow more likely to be fixed. It makes it easy to discard any argument you’re making because the actual things you’re saying are not true. When the person lying is an attorney who’s ostensibly on our side, this bothers me; it tells me that this person is so incompetent that he can’t get people to agree with him without making shit up. He can’t be bothered to do 5 minutes of research on issues fundamental to his case before taking an interview.

              If some patients can’t afford $35/month, that’s a failing of society. Our social services, including medicaid, should be easy to access, and they aren’t. I’m personally of the opinion that, at minimum, UBI at a level sufficient to cover all necessities in a given location is the minimum that our society needs.

              And this isn’t a failing of society solely in relation to healthcare costs. The costs of housing, education, food - every necessity - are all too expensive even for many people working full-time jobs to afford. These are all systemic problems and suing pharmaceutical companies within the bounds of our capitalist system isn’t going to fix anything. Capping out of pocket insulin costs for medicaid patients actually fixed something - maybe not for everyone, but for one of the largest groups of people who were shafted by the previous system.

              Why don’t you think the accomplishments of the scientists involved in coming out with new compounds that solve problems with existing drugs are worth acknowledging? If they’re worthless, then it follows that nobody should care how much they cost. If they’re essential improvements and everyone who needs them should have access to them, that’s a much better foundation to an argument. Then the focus can be on ensuring that advancements still happen while ensuring that the people who need the products of those advancements receive them.