Brenden is a very healthy little boy except for one thing, a chronic case of diaper rash. His poor booty has been every shade of red you can imagine. Suspecting a yeast infection, his pediatrician prescribed a special ointment. Unfortunately, our insurance doesn’t cover it. The cost is around $250 for an 8oz tube that might last a week or two. Once the pharmacist broke the bad news to Jenny, she prepared to leave. Then the pharmacist pulled her close and showed her the list of ingredients for the ointment:

• Triple Paste, an excellent diaper rash cream that we were already using
• Vaseline
• Monistat

“You can make this yourself using over-the-counter ingredients,” the pharmacist said. So we did. We already had the Triple Paste. Jenny bought a tube of store-brand Monistat for about $4 and decided the Vaseline wasn’t really necessary. Total cost: $4 instead of $250.

I’m not saying all drug companies are evil or that all drugs are simply combinations of cheap OTC products. I am saying that it’s really hard not to hate the drug companies as an industry when they combine such cheap, simple ingredients and sell them for over 50 times what the drug cost to produce.