In Europe in general, they're getting the drugs later. I believe the average delay is like three years on new drugs. Because they're regular, they don't usually have more hurdle regulatory hurdles for approval. And yeah, those new drugs are more expensive. It's not free.
When there's no vaccine on the market, people will look for other ways to be safe, including school closures and the handwashing of groceries. Listen as economist Casey Mulligan of the University Chicago talks with EconTalk's Russ Roberts about the costs of delaying a vaccine, the hidden costs of FDA regulation, and what we learned and failed to learn about the Covid pandemic.