Comment by YZF | Hacker News Reader

Comment by YZF | Hacker News Reader

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Money and politics. Why can someone drive for 6 months in a country with a foreign driver's license but can't get a local license?

I've had this misdiagnosed medical condition for 25 years by multiple doctors. Nothing serious but extremely annoying. There are approved drugs in Europe for decades which are much better than the ones approved in North America. One day the company making the drug that's approved in North America decided to stop making it! You just could not get it. This was the event that finally led to the correct diagnosis for my condition because I was in so much pain I got to see the expert. Turns out my condition has a very simple non-prescription solution and for 25 years I've been taking the wrong meds that happen to alleviate this different condition as well!

So I am good but this condition is not uncommon. What are all the other people that really need this drug in North America doing?

I'm not sure what's the takeaway here. Maybe that efficient/smart organizations generally don't exist. This is just a reflection of human nature.

If you're okay with it, could you expand/name the condition you thought you had, the actual one, and the medication(s)? Never know, might help someone else out

I'm a bit concerned about my privacy but the condition is herpes virus infection of the eye. The similar condition is Thygeson's disease. The drug in question (that I could not get) is called Viroptic which for some reason helps with both conditions (despite them not being related). Thygeson's is thought to be more of an immune system issue.

So if you've been diagnosed with herpes, and anti-virals don't seem to help, maybe you don't have herpes. If you do have herpes of the eye there are good drugs approved in Europe but not in the North America (though there are likely some approved drugs in the US which will still help - it's complicated).

Why can someone drive for 6 months in a country with a foreign driver's license but can't get a local license?

A government issued id, like a driver's license, is often required for various services like opening bank account, a telephone connection, avail some government service etc. Thus a local driver's license can be used for deception by a foreigner who wants to pretend to be a local citizen.

That part is fine. I'm talking about needing to retake tests.

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