Well, it's not just regulatory pressures. Part of it has to do with capitalist greed ... just look at the profit margins these hospitals and pharma companies have (like the oil companies). There's probably a certain degree of collusion there and lack of any REAL competition. People don't pick one hospital over another because it's cheaper. Whereas the goods have gone down due to cheap Chinese labor, and sometimes the technologies to produce them have improved. So, for instance, a 55" big screen TV cost $3,000 - $4,000 about 10 years ago. Now you can get one for the upper $300s. It's because the tech has changed (cheaper, lighter LED vs. LCD ... and more production lines mass producing them).