medicine cost in USA

[nohorn]

I know the Brits system of socialized care has its dark side, and that you pay a lot of taxes.........

I live in U.S., I just got a prescription filled for one tube (30g) of something called, Zovirax, a medicine which works wonderfully. It is not available in generic. It cost $526.00 for this tube.

In the U.S. there are the haves and have nots, those who have insurance and those who don't. I am fortunate in that I have outstanding insurance.
Sometimes it is people of have worked hard and do not have insurance, perhaps have lost their job.

I posted this so that those who live in G.B. are probably better off than we are, our system is screwed up. Something must be done, I don't know what.

I too have heard G.B. cannot sustain the level of medicine much longer.
Not enough wage earners, etc.,

I think the world may be doomed or life as we know it may not continue as governments break down, it is inevitable.

Are there any answers or solutions?
Thanks for listening to this diatribe.
nohorn

[daffy654]

Zovirax is available as an over the counter medication here in the UK, it costs around £6.00 a tube in my local pharmacy. I'm horrified at the cost to you!

[jno]

Zovirax? 2gm costs £4.27 on Amazon.

Amazon.co.uk User Recommendation

[bednobs]

over here the cost to the NHS if it bought it is around 14 pounds for a 10 g tube. If it was prescribed, the most anyone would pay is (i think) £7.65
people would still moan about the prescription charge too :)

[gingejbee]

...The tube available OTC here is only 5grams... However, it's still a huge difference!

[4getmenot]

you should haveougt it off ebay

[cathfromsaron]

scripts are free here in wales ... and i can't believe they want that for zovirax there!

[EDDIE51]

Why not buy it off an online pharmacy ? most will post wordwide.
I can't belive the cost in the USA , pehaps I'll buy a few tubes and sell them on ebay USA.

[EDDIE51]

Is the $526 dollars what they charge the insurance company or do you pay it ? Hell, even a private prescription here is only £25 .

[pastafreak]

I just googled-I'm familiar with Zovarix,it's readily available here...

http://www.google.co....IG-DQ&ved=0CFkQ_QgwAw

[funnygirl]

And you can get cheaper alternatives. Like Boots own sore lip cream.

[pastafreak]

OOOps...submitted too soon.....

have to say I know it's bad there---I'm an American in the UK,and I hear stories from my brother. There was also a docu on here a month or so ago that looked at poverty in the States-the tent cities popping up every where,the horrific health care costs. I don't know if I will ever go back to live there.

[alavahalf]

Dont go rushing to list Zovirax on Ebay.com hoping to make a killing ... it's readily available for under 11 dollars.. !

[gattoveloce]

Hi in the past I have bought a generic one from Home Bargains (virasorb) it appears to have the same amount of active ingredient, Acicovir 5% and costs around 99p for a 2g tube. I honestly couldn't tell you if it's any good as I have never remembered to apply it. It has to be applied at the tingly time, instead I apply neat lavender oil which I swear by, it always nips it in the bud and prevents it developing into a mouthful of blisters.

[nohorn]

Thanks all to replied.....the comparisons were amazing. Yes I will buy it elsewhere, and I hope it is not counterfit. Thanks to the expatriat reply. Things are getting bad here. Much worse for many people besides me. The difference in cost was mindboggling.

[nohorn]

This is nohorn again......as I understand it, the cost would be the same if someone who paid cash for it, or insurance. I had to pay 25% of the cost. i am still reeling at the differences.

[jno]

I sometimes buy medicines when I'm in the US that I can't get at all here. So the inadequacies aren't all one way.

Here's some imported from Israel, cheaper than you've been paying

http://www.thedrugcom...l/zovirax_ointment/5/

[hc4361]

Here in the UK one of my in-laws has a life long medical condition that would cost £1000s per year to treat. If she continues with the treatment her life expectancy will be normal and the treatment means she has a good quality of life. If she didn't have the treatment she'd be dead within 3 to 5 years.
Cost to her - nil. On the whole the NHS is fantastic.

Even the private medical sector makes mistakes that can be fatal, and nobody can absolutely guarantee the success of any treatment or operation, no matter how much money the patient has.

[hc4361]

I can't understand why anyone would have such a huge tube of Zovirax. It should not be used for more than 10 days and the teeniest of tubes lasts that long.

[nohorn]

Yes this is nohorn again< I had always gotten tiny little tubes before. The person who prescribed it, seemed not to be familiar with it. Oh well

Thanks for everyone replying.

[Sqad]

I certainly am not questioning your integrity nohorn, but you must be mistaken.........£330 for a tube of Zovirax is clearly a mistake.