Bert, deliberately picked this example because Insulin has been in use for about 100 years, and I suspect the patent has run out. Costs like this can only be explained by assuming a company charges what the traffic will bear, to a totally captive customer base, with no relationship to what it costs to develop or make. I do believe a company, doctor, or other vital service has some humanitarian responsibility in addition to profit. Someone in their system should say "Wow, we can make this drug for $0.14 per dose. Maybe a 10000% profit is a little excessive, since our customers have no choice?"
I have the same issue on a local level. A vial of Remicade costs less that $700 at Drugstore.com. If the hospital gives the infusion, they charge about $8,000.00. And, it is not like my crohns patient can walk down the block and get it cheaper. They have no choice. Now, I know they use a precious IV bag and needle, and 15 minutes of nurse time, and need to make money, but that is just greed.
