The cost of looking after somebody who suffers from one of Scotland's two biggest killer diseases—heart disease and strokes—in intensive care or high dependency units is about £7,000 a week.When one considers the widespread evidence about people who are forced to go without prescriptions because they cannot afford £6.50, £13 or, should they need four items, £26, we can see that the consequent cost to the health service begins to escalate when we are forced to treat them elsewhere.