Reply to w30bob
What you mention access to the "expensive stuff", those meds may only be expensive in America, or far more expensive than they are elsewhere, because of the for-profit healthcare model in the US. In England, the NHS (national health service, paid for by a mandatory 12.25% tax in addition to our basic incone tax), buys meds in bulk and negotiates with pharmaceutical companies to supply meds at lower prices since they're primarily paid for by the state and they need the best price possible (aadults aged 16-65 aso pay a £10 "contribution" for a prescribed medicine, no matter what it is). We have access to lots of new drugs, but you're right about the state not financing some of the very new, niche formulations. Overall I think it's about access to "free" healthcare. Access is dreadful right now with waiting lists in the worst state in NHS history, but overall the system seem to works for more people than it fails.Â