Why are medical supplies so expensive

[Fixit2010]

Why is it that a tube of over the counter cream/paste/medicinal potions are so expensive if you have to nip down to the medical deck?

Surely they buy them in bulk and must get volume prices and yet they charge 3 times the retail price to your account.

[Jim_Iain]

1 minute ago, Fixit2010 said:

Why is it that a tube of over the counter cream/paste/medicinal potions are so expensive if you have to nip down to the medical deck?

Surely they buy them in bulk and must get volume prices and yet they charge 3 times the retail price to your account.

 

I guess the answer to your questions is because they "CAN" and while at sea you don't have an option of running down to the corner store.   The same could be said as to why a bottle of Wine on the ships is 3x the price of our local wine shop.  

 

I see you are not from the U.S. but any of us American's who have ever seen a breakdown of our hospital bills are shocked at what the initial billing rate is for things like a single Tylenol  at $100.   Of course insurance carriers have a negotiated rates and the prices are adjusted before paid.

[mek]

Probably to help compensate for the medical facility and staff salaries.  And just because they can.

[gerif]

Kind of like a very small convenience store. They have to stock a lot of items in a small space. They might not have a need for some of the stuff so it expires and needs to be discarded. All of this adds to the cost. 

[GastroGnome]

Also possibly as a bit of a deterrent.  If they offered over the counter prices people would treat them as a mobile chemist and not take care to bring their own. There needs to be a levy to encourage people to be as responsible as possible in bringing their own medications. 

[2theship]

On the other side of the coin, on a recent cruise I needed some ibuprofen as I had not packed enough. I looked in the ship's shops and found it at an outrageous price for just a few tablets. I went down to the medical center where I was able to buy a reasonable quantity of the prescription strength ibuprofen (meaning I would take fewer tablets at a time) for a price that was much more acceptable. Certainly not as cheap as Costco but significantly better than upstairs.

[1025cruise]

You could also look up a pharmacy in port. I once went to a pharmacy in Grand Cayman for something for my wife.

[Presto2]

My initial response to this was "Why is the wine so expensive?"

Basically, you are a captive audience and 'because they can' as others have said.