I agree with you 100%.. I remember my doc making house calls, and on a Sat he walked to the house 3 miles, as he was an observant Jew.. He also charged what he thought you could pay..
As for the older drugs working.. You are correct.. I did an eight year study on drugs for hypertention.. The end result was the cheapest drug was the most effective.. Hydrocholthiazide (HCTZ) worked the best.. This was a NIH study called Allhat.
Barri