Cancer drugs are incredibly expensive and patients pay a good chunk of that cost. Drug prices in general are too high and the government is too blame for not using its patent-granting power to force price reductions. But an article points out another vehicle to help reduce costs. It turns out that often patients are given far more of a drug than they actually need. Lowering the dose could help decrease treatment costs. The article suggests $30 billion or more could be saved. Drug manufacturers have zero incentive to lower doses. Many oncology practices are run by drug wholesalers, who also make more money if more drug is used. Lower doses also likely would reduce the side effects of these drugs, which are often quite awful. This is just another simple example of how a lot of money could be saved in the health system, but won’t be because someone makes too much money the way it works now. (KFF Article)
