I think we are weird sometimes. By “we” I mean us - people, the society. When I was at the hospital with Dante I had lots of time to think. If there was any reason for Dante´s weird problem (nobody knows what it was) then it was those three hours me, Maik and Dante got to spent in a small room with almost nothing around. Just a computer and an operation/surgery table. Very stimulating environment for my thoughts. I was just sitting there and thinking. Dante´s “holiday” at the hospital will cost me pretty much. And we are lucky he did not need an operation. And it is “just” a dog. There are countless cases when people can not afford the treatment they should get. I was trying to understand that. Yes all the tools and “machines” for the operations cost a lot. That´s why it so expensive. The research costs a lot. Scientists. Knowledge. One would almost “buy” that argument. Then I realized how everything around us is developing. Technical develpment is fast. Some years ago we had several files on floppy discs. Now I am running with 80 GB iPod in my pocket that was pretty ok to buy when it comes to the price of it. People have flat screen TVs, incredible machines that help us to consume and consume and create new needs. Swedish houses are full of different technical miracles we actually do not need for our survival.
Should not that be the other way around? Should not health care be affordable instead?
a clear yes
a big YES! Yes, health care should be affordable. It should be a priority in policy making. It should be a priority before somany other things.
When asked about happiness, people always name health – their personal health and the health of their family as a big part of their happiness.
No happiness without health – is what they say.
but then… why are pincetts, surgery knives, scissors, desinfection products… etc… so expensive? And why is a cell phone easier affordable?
Who makes those decisions?
But for people, it’s not like that. At least not here. If it is a grave real sufficiant need, you mostly don’t pay for your medical problems in norway. Dogs is different. I would not be very happy, no matter how much i love dogs, if health care for pets were so very much prioritised. There are more important things, in my view, that should get gouvenemntal founding.
On the other hand, there is a clear answer to why medicines and everything is so expensive for the gouvenement to buy. The medicine industry is cynical. People *have* to buy their things, they have monopoly on their cures. So they can overprice it almost at will, and still people will have to buy it and they earn a lot. I want to think that there should be an international law against patents and secrecy around medical cures, but… If there was no huge profits to be made from medicine, who would invest enough in the reserach in our not-so-ideal world?