Forensic Science Blog

Drugs, Health Care, “Sicko,” and Forensic Medicine

Over the past few weeks, a few things have been on my mind that have me conflicted. It started with a conversation over a birthday meal for a pharmacist friend of mine with some of her colleagues in attendance. We were at Gainesville’s Mediterranean lounge and cafe, Farah’s, relaxing over a meal of gyros and hummus. After a few hours of lively discussions of everyday summer nonsense - BBQs, fireworks, more friends getting married - the chatter slowly turned into a heated debate over the cost of medicine and health care in America thanks to Michael Moore’s new documentary Sicko.

I am very much bothered by the fact that the prescription drugs we produce in this country come at a premium. It seems so asinine to me that identical scripts are available for a cut rate just across our borders. While I do understand that we are subsidizing first class research here in the States, I cannot fathom a good reason to continue to pass this cost onto the consumer at the retail counter. Does this not fuel the volume of people seeking alternate routes of abstaining prescription drugs? It seems to me that this path will inevitably increase the amount of diversion to the black markets and increase individuals’ risks of obtaining dangerous counterfeit goods from less scrupulous pharmacies (including Internet pharmacies).

Moore’s Sicko also stirred up some aggravation and some thoughts about the medical care in our country.  For those that have not seen the documentary, it is rather compelling.  While I have mixed feelings about Moore - he hit the nail on the head with this one (with his usual embellishments).  However, Moore wasn’t completely right in his assessment of the US health care system.
It hit me on the way home that we do have socialized medicine in our country - something that is overlooked quite often.  Forensic medicine is available to every citizen in need and is funded at the municipal, state, and federal levels.  The glamor of CSI and similar pop forensic television has placed a lot of stress on the autopsy/medical examiners - but many other aspects of the discipline enrich our daily lives (via the public health and criminal justice services they provide).

Now if we can translate this model to other realms of medicine is another story.  But surely our medical examiners and forensic nurses are paid decently and live comfortably, have say over the way they handle their “practices,” and are free to work where ever they please.  All of these were arguments for not pursuing socialized medicine.  Seems to me that there has to be a compromise between the privately ran options we are currently engaged in and the models available in England, Canada, and France.

For those that have seen Sicko - the Cuba bit was rich!  Here’s Moore on Nightline - decide for yourself and chime in.