That's a very selective example. The US controls TONS of hormones, Melatonin just got grandfathered in. If anything the UK system is more self-consistent than the US, even if I think both systems over-protect hormones with a low risk profile (like Melatonin in the UK).

As a counter-example, up until fairly recently you could buy Co-codamol (codeine, an opioid) in the UK off-the-shelf (i.e. no script). Which is a controlled substance.

See how people can use selective examples to play the "one system good, one system bad" game?

I wasn’t playing a game, but if we must, you can buy jars of naproxen off the shelf in the US as well - prescription only here. And antibiotic ointment, antitussives, antibiotic eye drops, and benzocaine throat spray, just to pick what I see in our cabinet. I only share my own experience though, but I find US pharmacies to be streets ahead in both variety and depth. If other people have other experiences, that is fine and I believe them.

One big benefit, though, is you can legally import or bring in POMs from overseas, a luxury the US does not have.

In terms of access to drugs, the differences between countries is incoherent, not really a "good vs bad" situation. A lot of it has to do with the different ways nations fumble their endless (yet fruitless) attempts to limit abuse and recreational use.

But in terms of cost, the US system is bad. If we as a nation want to invest in drug development, we should do so. Instead we ask grandma and grandpa and the chronically ill to flip the bill. Hard to think of a worse approach.