Viagra goes OTC in UK - Valentine's Day

[havocmom]

http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/articlenews.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2007-02-11T140257Z_01_L11797018_RTRUKOC_0_UK-BOOTS-VIAGRA.xml

LONDON (Reuters) - Men will be able to buy impotence treatment Viagra over the counter in Britain for the first time from Valentine's Day, chemist chain Alliance Boots said on Sunday.

Three Manchester Boots pharmacies will sell the prescription-only medication made by U.S. drugs group Pfizer in a pilot programme from February 14.

Men aged between 30 and 65 suffering from erectile dysfunction will be able to buy four Viagra pills for 50 pounds without having to get a prescription from a doctor first.

Instead, they will have a private consultation with a Boots pharmacist, when their medical history will be checked and measurements taken of their blood pressure, cholesterol and blood glucose levels.

So, the birthrate in UK is too low to suit the white folks at the top or what?

[sam sarrha]

1. low birth rate.. who wants to bring a child into a dying planet..?/

[ProdigalJunkMail]

2. gee...i don't see any mention of white folks

must be something in your eyes (or your head).

sP

[havocmom]

10. Guessing Brown immigrants don't make policy

:shrug:

[ProdigalJunkMail]

12. but the racist comment has to come before you KNOW?

was there anything in the article that said ANYTHING about race? Only white people can get the tabs? Do you know anything about the UK and the decisions regarding their healthcare environment? Why would you say something like that?

sP

[havocmom]

13. Nothing in the article. And is it racist to acknowledge the reality of who sets policy in the UK

Do you know anything about me? What do you base your assumption that I am a racists upon? I do know for fact that the people on the top of the ladder in the UK, those who make the decisions are WHITE and mostly pretty damned rich.

white broad of anglo-saxon gene pool here, by the way. ;)

[ProdigalJunkMail]

15. me thinks your motive may be more racist than theirs

The motive here has nothing to do with their race, to be sure. It has to do with sex and money. Fifty quid for a few little magic beans is rich...if you'll pardon the pun. And just because you share the gene-pool doesn't mean you cannot harbour racist feelings about them.

I just don't understand why you would play the race card here...

sP

[havocmom]

16. WHAT RACE CARD

Call an ophthalmologist. Your vision is a tad off.

Edited: Look, the leaders of UK have a long, established history of being pretty racists. That is fact.
My pointing that out does not make me a racist.

My Brit friends all agree with me. :shrug:

[ProdigalJunkMail]

18. talking about whitey...

you just had to throw in race where no race mention was valid. That is playing the race card. The article says NOTHING about race, yet you just HAD to mention that the bulk of the people in control of the UK government are white. What was your motive for that? Think people here don't know that? Were you trying to inform us? Why mention race at all?

My vision is perfect by the by.

sP

[undeterred]

3. Reminds me of a joke

A lady walks up to the pharmacist and says to him "My husband wants to make love to me but he's having trouble and he's too embarrassed to ask his doctor. Can you get it Over The Counter?"

"Only if I take two!" he answered }(

[dysfunctional press]

4. once a medication becomes over-the-counter, insurance stops covering it.

nt.

[Katherine Brengle]

7. One of the main reasons I don't think bc pills should go OTC.

[havocmom]

11. Too many health issues

BC pills vary so much in type/strength and what individuals may tolerate could differ vastly. Throw in health history, blood pressure and so on, and yeah, a visit to the doctor would probably be advisable every few months

But, IT ALL SHOULD BE COVERED by insurance too. BC pills are not just a lifestyle choice for many. There are plenty of medical conditions helped/controlled by them to make it essential that the costs be covered and pharmacists should not have ANY rights to deny dispensing.

[Katherine Brengle]

17. Oh absolutely --

way too may variables for them to be OTC. But insurance coverage is key to a lot of women getting them, even as a "lifestyle" choice.

Not too long ago, a lot of insurers didn't cover them at all.

[havocmom]

20. LOL well the one really good thing about most covering Viagra...

was that it did help get BC covered by most insurers. There were some law suits re gender bias as I recall.

[MindPilot]

5. 4 tabs 50 quid?

That makes for a pretty dear hard-on.

Sorry luv, couldn't afford any roses, but look!

[undeterred]

6. then play the SNL

"dick in a box" video!

[havocmom]

14. LOL, No roses?

:rofl:

[siligut]

19. I have the visual, Opus saying this with the Geico gecko voice.

Priceless! Thanks.

[charlie]

8. They'll have them in gumball machines soon

I've never seen a drug fast-tracked like Viagra. Meanwhile, I can't get my OTC antihistamines at commissary prices anymore because they won't stock them in Texas. Whacko pharmacists won't dispense birth control, but I've never heard of one of them refusing to deal with Viagra. Bob Dole wants you to know his little soldier is standing tall again. WTF is up with the hardsell for those damn weiner pills?

[bridgit]

9. now that's, ah-hum, what i call 'head's up marketing'...

:blush: :rofl:

[mr blur]

21. Of course if you get it on presciption here,

it costs you the same as any other prescription - about £6. If you receive any type of benefit - income support, disability etc., then prescriptions are free.

Quite honestly, if you need Viagra then it's for a medical-related reason and won't cost you £50. If you don't need it then you can pay for your thrills.