'And then there are the drug companies. A couple of months ago the Obama administration made a secret and extremely troubling deal with the drug industry's lobbying arm, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America. The lobby agreed to contribute $80 billion in savings over 10 years and to sponsor a multimillion-dollar ad campaign in support of health care reform. The White House, for its part, agreed not to seek additional savings from the drug companies over those 10 years. This resulted in big grins and high fives at the drug lobby. The White House was rolled. The deal meant that the government's ability to use its enormous purchasing power to negotiate lower drug prices was off the table. ... [T]he public - struggling with the worst economic downturn since the 1930s - is looking on with great anxiety and confusion. If the drug companies and the insurance industry are smiling, it can only mean that the public interest is being left behind.'
And a layman's breakdown of the true cost ratio to expense of consumer
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/18/opinion/18herbert.html?_r=2&ref=opinion
I do not agree with this action by Obama, but it seems he is following in the footsteps of Clinton and Bush. Cowtowing to a huge lobby in order to push through a prized program.
ReplyDeleteBTW: This is a hybrid pull from a NYT opinion peice here: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/18/opinion/18herbert.html?_r=1&ref=opinion