Have you ever heard someone complain about an ill person and proclaim, "They should take better care of themselves. They often skip their medication."

We shouldn't be too hasty to judge.Health care costs have become overwhelming.According to Aetna Insurance, "Total health care spending in the United States is expected to reach $4.8 trillion in 2021, up from $2.6 trillion in 2010 and $75 billion in 1970. To put it in context, this means that health care spending will account for nearly 20 percent of gross domestic product, or one-fifth of the U.S. economy, by 2021."There are too many tentacles in the medical costs octopus to discuss in one column. But one problem we'll point out that many people overlook - until it affects them personally - are prescription drugs.I had a friend who lost both of her kidneys to disease and was on dialysis. She tried to get on the kidney transplant list.There are numerous requirements to get placed on the transplant waiting list. Among them is a financial analysis.There are no consequences for the transplant hospital that declines a match offer for any reason, including finances. As a result, the woman was never placed on the transport list and has since died.Why the financial analysis?Because medicines for kidney transplant recipients can cost as much as $3,000 a month.The same is for liver transplant recipients. Medicaid coverage lasts only three years and eight months, then the patient is on his or her own for the drugs unless they have insurance.Prescription drug prices are insane and it's only getting worse.Like regular health insurance, prescription plans have higher deductibles, and there are some medicines insurers won't even cover.Last September, a firm raised the cost of Daraprim, a drug that AIDS patients need, from $13.50 per pill to $750. The 5,000 percent increase occurred overnight.Politicians publicly denounced the action by the maker of Daraprim. The firm fired its CEO for other reasons. Once the attention turned from the company, the political admonishments ceased. And the price of Daraprim was never reduced.A 60-day supply of Daraprim for AIDS victims costs in excess of $45,000.Drug companies are advertising on TV today like cigarette firms bought airtime in the 1960s.You've seen the ads for Humira, an arthritis drug. A year supply of Humira costs about $14,000.Harvoni is advertised as a medicine for hepatitis C patients who take only one pill, once a day, for 12 weeks. The cash price for this is a whopping $37,804 for 28 tablets.Bristol-Myers Squibbs advertises the drug Opdivo "for a chance to live longer." It is used for various types of cancers. The cost is about $12,500 a month for users.Viberzi, used for diarrhea and abdominal pain, according to commercials, can cost $1,200 a month.A drug to treat moderate to severe psoriasis, Cosentyx, costs $2,052 for a 150mg prefilled syringe. Users need one syringe per week for the first four weeks.President Barack Obama announced in February he will be seeking $755 million in funding for cancer research.There's no question there must be research done. But what happens when a drug is discovered to cure cancer? Will it be so expensive only the wealthy can afford it?Incidentally, all these drugs are much cheaper in other countries, including Canada, England, Mexico and India.So this is why many people suffer from ailments and don't take their proper medications. It's not because they don't want to. It's because they can't afford them.