Recently talked to the largest for-profit lab group (Proa) in Mexico. CEO said that pharmacy chains in Mexico were now employing doctors on their retail premises and offering primary care consultations for just $1 to $1.50, as compared to the $20 plus that doctors apparently charge from their own primary care units. He reckons that pharmacy chains are already doing 500,000 consultations a day on this basis.
The obvious conclusion to be drawn from this is that the pharmacies will get more drug sales and that the practice will lead to heavy overprescription. On the other hand, at this price, the move effectively means that almost all Mexicans will get affordable access to primary care.
Which is the lesser of the two evils?
