&gt; trusted to run their own lives<p>Most of the time yes, but this is about creating a functioning market. I don&#x27;t think people can be trusted to create a functioning market for products they sometimes can&#x27;t set a monetary value on (if they are ill) and sometimes don&#x27;t understand (because they aren&#x27;t doctors).<p>&gt; Britain for instance allows over the counter medicine that&#x27;s illegal in the US.<p>I&#x27;d guess there is medicine that is allowed over the counter in the US that would be prescription in the US. But the bulk is probably the same.<p>I fail to see how not being able to tell my doctor he should provide me with a specific prescription medication is detrimental to how I run my life.<p>Healthcare costs need to be held down, most importantly in single payer systems, but  it&#x27;s quite important in insurance based systems too.