Free Market, My A..

Here is my medical history. I let myself get a little overweight and did not exercise like I should, so at the age of 63 I started a mild blood pressure medicine, Hydrochlorothyozide. Then, about a year later, to get my blood pressure down to where I was comfortable in the long run I asked the doctor for a little boost and he gave me a prescription for Lancinopril. I have taken both ever since, and I just turned 65.

My old medical insurance allowed me to get these two filled for about six dollars a month, together, at the local Walgreen Drug Store. Then upon reaching 65, I opted not to sign up for a drug plan since my medicines would be so inexpensive, I thought.

When I went to fill the prescriptions last week, I was hit in the face for a $34 bill for one month's supply for the two together at Walgreen. I basically told them where they could stick their pills. I came home and told Sarah that I was willing to die before I would pay that much for pills that are produced at probably about two to three cents apiece.

We called Walmart and found out that we could get a three month's supply of each for $10, basically what I was paying with insurance to Walgreen. We had the prescriptions changed over and Walgreen will also lose my wife's business which was much bigger than mine. We had already refused to buy even a bag of candy from CVS because they refused Sarah's drug plan.

I read some junk in the paper this morning about how we should let free markets work and keep government out of them. I could not agree more, but was it not government that stepped in to forcibly prevent workers from carrying on union actions that led to government protection of them? Was it not governments that propped up the financial system when it was in failure?

And, is it not government almost guaranteeing the ability of insurance companies to pillage the population by making them free of anti-trust regulations? Is it not government that makes it possible for drug companies to have so many different markets for their prices that they can charge ten cents for a pill here and eighty cents over there? In a truly free market, would people not be allowed to go to wherever the lowest prices are, even if they are in Canada?

NO LARGE CORPORATION DOING BUSINESS TODAY WANTS A FREE MARKET AND THEY ARE LYING THROUGH THEIR TEETH IF THEY CLAIM OTHERWISE.
Without government protection, propping up, subsidies, special tax rules, and a hoste of other benefits, these corporations would have to become competitive, and that is the last thing they want unless they are allowed to form monoplies. The whole Republican/Free Market connection is an illusion.

I happen to be taking two medicines that Walmart buys in quantity. If I did not, then I would be subject to a market place that is about as free as a dog on a short leash and tied to a metal pole. It is that way because nobody wants to compete any longer. Competition does not assure the very high ongoing salaries of the executives, so screw it, they want the government to give them the protection that we call socialism and communism if it is given to poor working stiffs or common people, but which we now have labeled free market when corporations are the beneficiaries.