https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Jordan#Illness_and_deat...
It's been almost twenty years, so it shouldn't surprise me that new research means that people who died in the past maybe could have survived longer if we had known better. And, of course, Jordan was going to die some day. But I certainly wish he'd had more time.
Today, PA is easily treated with vitamin B12 injections.
Medicaid negotiates with manufacturers to get the best price. When they are successful in securing a low price, they preferentially cover them.
Usually if the doctor can show why those brands aren’t good enough, Medicaid will cover alternatives that aren’t covered, but it can be a lot of work for the doctor.
I don't think they're picky about brand, I seem to recall that they didn't know about the cheap insulin at Fred Meyer when their Medicaid stopped covering what they were getting before. I think that insulin does work for them.
b) drugs cost a shitload (hundereds of thousands/yr) to extend lifespan by...months
c) only for ATTR (not AL) amyloidosis
d) the drive to diagnose and treat only really started after tafamidis (1st drug with any effectiveness) was marketed...hmmm
e) the dude in the article used as an example was probably helped more by treating his afib than by the fancy drugs
for sure there are some genetically transmitted younger patient for whom this is important. But there are a lot of frail older people who are getting diagnosed with wild-type ATTR amyloid for...questionable benefit at massive cost. IMO, the jury is still out
a) Yes, it's more common in older people. A lot of old people end up in hospital
b) 30% fewer deaths and hospital admissions is a good thing in my book
c) The more common form according to my wife
Not sure what relevance the source has here, but it’s not correct. Primary (AL) is the most common in the developed world and secondary (AA) elsewhere. There are some foci of ATTR but it is by far not the most common.
- Flufenamic acid
- Valtoren (Diclofenac)
- Diflunisal
off-label.
https://www.benthamdirect.com/content/journals/cdtcnsnd/10.2...
IANAD but I believe that Valtoren has the least side effects, but in general since they're all NSAIDs they have been tested for long-term analgesic use, so they're relatively safe and quite inexpensive.
No way they cost that much to make.
Big pharma is out of control.
> Orphan drugs enjoy substantial pricing power because there are few or no therapeutic competitors. As a result, discounts off the list price, if any, tend to be small. In a recent study of 50 patients receiving tafamidis, the mean (SD) cost of a 30-day supply was $23,485 ($2); the resulting annual cost of $281,820 is greater than the $225,000 list price we assumed. In fact, U.S. prices for specialty pharmaceuticals typically experience substantial year-on-year price increases during the period of market exclusivity.
I mean, we shouldn't be surprised what happens to prices when the law goes out of its way to create a monopoly.
Prices were higher in 1922, and the Model T was basic and mass produced leading to a falling price.
Across the board, in 1922: https://www.1920-30.com/automobiles/1922-car-prices.html
Every damn time.
In 2023-2024, the average car price was $48,274, and the median income was $80,610. It now costs a whopping 60% of your yearly salary.
I'm not sure I buy this conversion. It was targeting the middle classes (and on credit), and middle classes in 2025 could buy that cash. Working classes in 2025 could probably buy that cash, and definitely on credit.
https://old.reddit.com/r/AskEconomics/comments/q20fr4/the_fo...
The 1922 price list looks solid though, it's from a dedicated 1920s 'fan' site, but, again, I haven't personally verified or cross checked the numbers - it just seemed like an interesting bit of info to chase :)