Bioengineering: A Problem or A Solution

Bioengineers spend tons of money researching, developing, and innovating health care technologies. Sure the end result may be a better drug, device, or tissue, but at what cost is it really at? It's obvious that bioengineers contribute to the raising costs of health care through the development of new technologies. They are part of the problem. Although, along with new technologies comes with reducing the cost of the older ones. So basically what I'm saying is bioengineers make new treatments more expensive, but more traditional treatments more affordable.

This may seem different. For bioengineers to be a part of the solution for reducing health care costs, they have to work backwards and forwards at the same time. In other words, bioengineers have to continue to work on new technologies (better drugs, imaging, etc), while also making existing things like a x-ray machines better and cheaper. This is a hard balance for anyone to do. Engineers want to go forwards, not backwards. The end goal here is to reduce health care costs, because the fanciest newest 3-D brain scan is practically useless if no insurance company will approve a test using that.


http://www.ny3d.org/3D_brain_Scan.jpg