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Carlene MacMillan, MD's avatar

I definitely thought you were just making a snarky face on TikTok but sometimes it was incongruent with the content and so this is definitely a plausible explanation.

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Kelly Martin's avatar

I’m all for making TMS widely available as a standard treatment for depression, and perhaps other conditions. I hope it’s not Big Pharma who may be blocking its availability.

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Owen Scott Muir, M.D, DFAACAP's avatar

Have you heard of insurance companies? ;)

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Kelly Martin's avatar

Of course. Are you saying TMS is expensive, and pills are cheaper in the short term, (but long term effects are quite “costly” for some people?

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Owen Scott Muir, M.D, DFAACAP's avatar

no, actually. pills are not cheaper, per se. Insurance companies aren't always in the business of saving money, it's worth understanding. Pills fit into a business model that includes PBMs, vertically integrated pharmacies, and the inability for the government to negotiate most drug prices.

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Kelly Martin's avatar

PBMs—A completely unnecessary layer to suck away profit from drug stores, in my opinion. (I work for a major chain of drug stores)

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