Increasing Cost of Drugs

I'm an "Insulin Dependent Type2 Diabetic". I've been Type2 for at least 20 years. This last year, my blood sugar numbers moved up to a different plateau which is a bad thing. My endocrinologist says, my pancreas function is degrading and it's time to start on insulin.

I hate this. I hate the process, the equipment involved, the awareness load, my impression that this is a step closer to the grave.

I've been using two types of slow-acting (time release), pen-injected insulin. One is once a week, one is daily. The after-insurance cost of my daily insulin went up $480/month in August, so I called my insurance company and they recommended another version, my doctor agreed with it, and the new version's after-insurance cost is $160/month.

The weekly insulin went up $873 (after insurance) in August. I couldn't find a workaround, so I spoke with my doctor who gave me two month's supply from their manufacturer's samples. I'm going to milk that as long as I can, but I'm not spending that much on a medication.

I've got the money. I can make it work. But it really kicked my depression over. I found myself with a lot of suicidal thoughts. This is a rigged game. They've got me. I can opt out. I need to read Death of a Salesman.

It's Labor Day. If you believe (as I do) that people have the right to withhold their labor, then I think people have a right to withdraw from a marketplace in which they're the target.

I don't see how people without health insurance, specialists, and time to work the details deal with this. I also think the pharma-doctor complex is working to keep me using the most expensive, most recent drugs when there are sufficient generic (or legacy) drugs to use.

Also underlying this is a cynical calculation of how much a life can be monetized and made into a profit center. This is similar to what the Vision Zero people ask: what is the cost justification of a a life? Is it $500/year, or is there no ethical calculation? Should we save a life whatever the cost, and whoever the life is?