[Vision2020] University dollars

Bill Strand strand@pacsim.com
Fri, 1 Aug 2003 21:27:41 -0700


Shawn,

You wrote:

"But what about the money saved by that prescription that the person can
then spend locally rather than it getting sent to the drug manufacturer
- which is out-of-state no matter where it's bought?"

I think you miss the issue here. Of course the products come from out of
state - nearly all products we purchase (cars, clothes, food, books,
etc...) are produced outside of Moscow. However, for drugs, there is a
pharmacist who certifies it, packages it, dispenses it, checks for
possible interactions with other drugs, and deals with the customer,
insurance companies and doctor offices. This pharmacist pulls a salary,
supports a family and purchases services and products in the community
in which they live. For mail order - that community is Beaverton Oregon.

As for "saving money" that could be spent locally - that would be nice
if I was actually saving money in this deal that I could spend in
Moscow. It is different for every individual, but for the Strand family,
we will be paying extra money no matter where we get our medications. We
won't be spending more money in this community because of this mail
order deal.

This deal takes money out of our community and takes business away from
our local pharmacies. It can't be spun any other way.

Bill Strand