How Much is Life Worth?

How much is 6 months of your life worth? If you're a British citizen, it's only worth about $22,750.

Bruce Hardy has cancer, and his health care provider (the British government) has decided they can't afford to pay for his treatment. "If the Hardys lived in the United States or just about any European country other than Britain, Mr. Hardy would most likely get the drug, although he might have to pay part of the cost. A clinical trial showed that the pill, called Sutent, delays cancer progression for six months at an estimated treatment cost of $54,000.

"But at that price, Mr. Hardy’s life is not worth prolonging, according to a British government agency, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence. The institute, known as NICE, has decided that Britain, except in rare cases, can afford only £15,000, or about $22,750, to save six months of a citizen’s life."

"Private and public insurers in the United States must pay whatever Celgene [the drug manufacturer] and other makers of unique cancer medicines decide to charge, so prices are soaring. Spending on cancer drugs and other such specialty medicines rose 9 percent last year and now represents 24 percent of the nation’s drug bill, according to Health Strategies Group, a New Jersey consulting company. Drug expenses in 2006 grew faster than any other part of the nation’s health bill except home care.

"But because of the institute, Britain’s National Health Service has been among the first to balk at paying such prices, which has led many companies to offer the British discounts unavailable almost anywhere else."

Since Britain runs on a state-provided health care system, I wonder if the lack of competition between health care providers affects the cost of care and pharmaceuticals. I know that my doctor's bills always have two prices: what they charge, and what they actually accept from a patient that has health insurance. They difference is remarkable. It doesn't really make sense to me that the uninsured are charged more - except for the fact that the health insurance companies cover a lot more patients and are able to negotiate rates with the doctors. Doctors know that they're better off accepting a lower payment from the insurance companies than having those companies pull them from their "preferred provider" list. I'd have to think that the price of prescriptions can be affected in a similar manner.