Progressive Technology Does Not Equal Progressive Health

I'm certainly in line with the school of thought that technology does drive up healthcare costs tremendously.  Medical technology must first be defined.  I believe includes both pharmacological, machinery, and biological advances to advance and improve societies health.  The key words here are "advance" and "improve."  The big bucks are most often found in the designer, cutting edge drugs, as well as new machinery such as lasers/MRIs etc.  The real issues that need rectifying are often the simplest.  These include primary healthcare and getting prescription drugs only to those who truly need them 

The problem with medicines overblown love-affair with technology is that it often times does not achieve its intended purpose: to improve the health of others.  It is misguided reasoning to believe that just because something is new, expensive, or has passed one stage of a clinical trial, that it will automatically benefit the masses.  Before we fully embrace and trust new innovation, we must first do a more thorough cost/benefit analysis.  Take a case in point in which we originally thought using mercury to treat STIs was effective and safe.  It took years before the medical community admitted their wrong doings by using mercury as medicine.  Maybe we'll look back on the modern era and realize our wrongdoings, but unfortunately, this takes time and requires many human beings to be societies' guinea pigs to test our "innovations."

At the end of the day, health is less about innovation and more about motivation where people are educated about health, nutrition, and well-being and pursue these as a means not only to benefit themselves, but society as well...Afterall, we're all in this together.