It’s almost impossible to talk about the economy and living standards without eventually getting caught up in a sometimes polarizing discussion about the high cost of healthcare. Spending for healthcare, as a percentage of GDP, has grown almost everywhere in the world, including the United States. Public resentment remains understandably high in this country as the pharmaceutical industry becomes bigger and more influential, generating a sense that the largest players are starting to depend more on marketing and lobbying than on visionary research.