Life saving 'buyers club'

We all know that in many ways, we are blessed to be in a country where healthcare is still affordable and not completely run under the whims and fancies of the insurance companies. It is also reassuring to walk into a medical store and get medicines, that too life saving ones, at affordable costs. But in developed countries and most other parts of the world, medicine cost itself can kill one.

And to get over this, a new type of online buyers have emerged – Buyers club. This is an online platform where buyers from all over the world converge to buy cheap generic medicines to cure hepatitis C and protect against HIV infection. The best part is that there is scientific data presented at recent medical conferences which suggests that treatment arranged through buyers club can be just as effective as through conventional channels. So much so for the warnings by regulators!

The buyers clubs' websites act as middlemen by providing details of trusted online pharmacies and drug manufacturers, exploiting a loophole in World Trade Organization patent rules that allows small-scale imports of medicines for personal use.

The savings are obvious – one month supply of HIV drugs will cost around $56 or 45 pounds in Britain, which is one-tenth the cost when buying a branded drug from the store. The medicine for Hepatitis –C can be imported from India for 1000 pounds v/s 35,000 pounds for branded drug in Britain.

It’s a shame that countries call themselves developed when drug companies loot their people and allow them to die while they fill their coffers.