US spent $307 billion on prescription drugs in 2010

by Kaye Stringer 

(NaturalNews) Americans spent $307.4 billion on prescription drugs in 2010, according to a recent report from consulting firm IMS Health. Although this figure is a 2.3 percent reduction from last year, it's still a huge portion of the U.S. economy to be spending on prescription medications, many of which are ineffective at best and extremely dangerous at worst.

According to Reuters, the decline in spending was due in part to greater use of generic medications and few new therapies introduced in 2010. Visits to doctors' offices also declined last year, as did the number of patients seeking new treatment for chronic illnesses. Because of a slow economy, high unemployment rates, and the loss of insurance coverage, Americans are forced to be more careful when it comes to spending money on healthcare.

Figures also indicated that more Americans are dependent on government assistance programs to help pay for medications. Thirty percent of all prescriptions in 2010 were filled through Medicaid or a Medicare Part D plan.

Although many Americans face economic struggles and limited resources, we are still investing a huge sum into a pharmaceutical industry that continues to fail us. Cancer treatments topped the list in 2010, representing $22.3 billion dollars, and yet chemotherapy offers only a 12 percent remission rate among patients seen at the early stages of illness. (2) Chemotherapy, like most drug-based treatment programs, fails to address the underlying causes of illness and simply introduces more toxins into the patient's body.

Meanwhile, nutrition-based cancer treatment plans -- such as Gerson Therapy, which has been shown to successfully treat 42 percent of patients -- continue to be outlawed in America. (2) (http://www.naturalnews.com/028382_G...)

Pharmaceuticals can have devastating consequences as well. In January, Natural News reported on ten drugs - mostly antidepressants - that are linked to violent behavior and even homicides. (http://www.naturalnews.com/031017_v...)

Despite all the funds pouring into the pharmaceutical industry, Americans aren't getting any healthier. Last fall, the CDC reported that nearly half of all Americans use prescription medications on a regular basis, and more than one in ten take five or more prescription drugs. (http://www.naturalnews.com/029664_p...) The 2010 President's Caner Panel reports that approximately 41 percent of Americans will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives. (3)

The healthiest people are those who don't rely on pharmaceuticals to fix their health problems, but take preventive measures to strengthen their immune systems through a healthy diet and exercise, and avoid exposure to GMOs, pesticides, food additives, and other toxins that can cause cancer and other serious health problems.

References:
1. Reuters: U.S. drug spending slows; hits 3.7 bln in 2010: report
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011...
2. The Gerson Therapy: The Proven Nutritional Program for Cancer and Other Illnesses, Charlotte Gerson and Morton Walker, D.P.M., 2006
3. "Reducing Environmental Cancer Risk," 2010 President's Cancer Panel
http://deainfo.nci.nih.gov/advisory...