Drug Industry Agrees To Health Overhaul

(AP)  The pharmaceutical industry agreed Saturday to spend $80 billion over the next decade improving drug benefits for seniors on Medicare and defraying the cost of President Barack Obama's health care legislation, capping secretive negotiations with the White House and key lawmakers.

The deal, expected to be announced later in the day, marked a major triumph for Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., as well as the administration. The chairman of the Senate Finance Committee has been negotiating with numerous industry groups for weeks as he tries to draft legislation that meets Obama's goal of vastly expanding health coverage, has bipartisan support and does not add to the deficit.

Under the deal, which several officials confirmed, drug companies would pay as much as half of the cost of brand-name drugs for lower and middle-income seniors in the so-called doughnut hole - a gap in coverage that is a feature of many of the plans providing prescription coverage under Medicare.

In addition, the entire cost of the drug would count toward a patient's out-of-pocket costs, meaning their insurance coverage would cover more of their expenses than otherwise.

Officials said Medicare patients with incomes up to about $80,000 or $85,000 would realize some benefit.

While none of the changes in the prescription drug program would directly lower government costs, the industry also agreed to additional measures that would give the Treasury more money under federal health programs. In particular, officials said drug companies would likely wind up paying pay higher rebates for certain drugs under Medicaid, the program that provides health care for the poor.

Those funds would be used to help pay for legislation expanding health insurance for millions who now lack it.

One official said the deal was agreed to late Friday night when Billy Tauzin, head of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), called Baucus.

It was not clear what impact, if any, the agreement would have on other health care providers who are in negotiations with Baucus.

But at a minimum, the agreement serves as an effective counter to impression that the drive to enact health care legislation was sputtering.

Ken Johnson, senior vice president of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, or PhRMA, said Friday night, "We remain committed to comprehensive health care reform and we are still in discussions with the administration and congressional leaders about ways we can make a positive contribution to this important effort."

The disclosure of negotiations came near the end of an up-and-down week for the administration and its allies on health care.

Congressional Budget Office estimates showed early versions of two major Senate bills were either too costly or failed to make a large enough dent in the ranks of the uninsured. Republicans seized on the reports as evidence that Democrats were losing traction.

They leapt again when it was disclosed that House Democrats were considering a wide array of tax increases to finance their legislation, including an income tax surcharge, a tax on employers based on the size of their payroll and a value-added tax, a form of a national sales tax.

House Democrats on Friday unveiled draft legislation they said would cover virtually all of the nation's nearly 50 million uninsured but it came without a price tag or an indication of how it would be paid for.

Major provisions of the 850-page measure would impose new responsibilities on individuals to obtain coverage and on employers to provided it. It also would end insurance company practices that deny coverage to the sick and create a new government-sponsored plan to compete with private companies.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said she hopes the legislation can clear the House before lawmakers leave for their annual August vacation.

[cydygitt1]

"One official said the deal was agreed to late Friday night when Billy Tauzin, head of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), called Baucus."

-----------------

Not surprising that billy tauzin was right in the middle of this....

He was a GOP congresscritter for 25 years from Louisiana, where he played a key role in shepherding the Medicare Prescription Drug Bill through Congress in 2004, which had been criticized by opponents for being too generous to the pharmaceutical industry.

Then, in 2005, billy tauzin just happened to begin work as the head of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, or PhRMA, a powerful trade group for pharmaceutical companies, for a mere $2.5 Million per year.

Just another republicant't sleezebag making pharmaceuticals and health care in general cost so much more in America!

[cbsblogger]

If big pharma was restricted from spending big mega dollars on marketing and lobbying we'd be getting our drugs at half price. Why market to those who need a prescription?

[nofoolling]

The deal, expected to be announced later in the day, marked a major triumph for Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., as well as the administration.

Hardy, har har har.

More song and dance, more smoke and mirrors.

We need to take the profit completely out of the health care arena.

We need to take the profit from those who prey upon the sick and needy.

We're not gonna settle for more vulturous predatory aquiecence by our bought and paid for leaders in Washington who's only purpose seems to be getting us to swallow another bitter pill candy coated to fool us into thinking they're actually helping us, instead of helping the corpserobbers in the health care carnival.

Universal health care without the insurance companies now!

[John_Merritt]

What they are failing to tell you, is that they will increase their charges by approximately 25-30% over that same time period. How about cost controls? That is a good start, reduces the moving parts and establishes a true baseline by which we can negotiate and manuever.

[Solarrays247]

"The deal, expected to be announced later in the day, marked a major triumph for Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., as well as the administration. The chairman of the Senate Finance Committee has been negotiating with numerous industry groups for weeks as he tries to draft legislation that meets Obama's goal of vastly expanding health coverage, has bipartisan support and does not add to the deficit."



Do you really believe that Sen. Baucus is working for the good of WE THE PEOPLE? Think again!

Here's a rundown of all the money that the people who are blocking real reform in health care have received from the health care industry.

Arlen Specter (R-D- PA- $4,026,933)
Max Baucus (DLC- MT- $2,833,731)
Mitch McConnell (R-KY- $2,758,468)

And when you just go right to Big Insurance, the non-presidential candidates who got the biggest legalized bribes were the 7 senators who have been tasked with the job of killing single-payer:

Ben Nelson (DLC-NE- $1,196,799)
Max Baucus (DLC- MT- $1,184,113)
Joe Lieberman (DLC- CT- $1,036,302)
Arlen Specter (R-D- PA- $1,035,530)
Chuck Schumer (D-NY- $981,400)
Mitch McConnell (R-KY- $929,207)
Chuck Grassley (R-IA- $884,724)

[Solarrays247]

* According to a recent report, the United States has $480 billion in excess spending each year in comparison to Western European nations that have universal health insurance coverage. The costs are mainly associated with excess administrative costs and poorer quality of care.

* The United States spends six times more per capita on the administration of the health care system than its peer Western European nations.

Source: The National Coalition on Health Care

www.nchc.org/facts/cost.shtml


For all those that parrot the far right, insurance companies and big pharm talking point that we don't need universal health care...

As Bill Maher so gracefully put it, 'With the system we have now the doctors are not making the calls, the patients cannot make the calls because the insurance companies make all the calls. It's called 'hospital gown coverage' whatever condition you currently have, chances are your @ss ain't covered.'
Posted by rednomo at 5:08 AM : Jun 9, 2009

[bajajohn1]

This debate about healthcare is not confined to healthcare alone. Rather it is also a debate about the future fiscal solvency of the nation.

[formrusmcsgt]

The deal, expected to be announced later in the day, marked a major triumph for Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., as well as the administration.
----
And for us all.

For years, the dubya administration was extolled by many to utilize the government's position of being the #1 client of big pharm to reign in excessive costs.

All to no avail.

It was obviously available for the asking.

[Dgunner]

ONLY IN AMERICA -- LAND OF THE RED WHITE AND BLUE.

[omega39-2009]

Oh boy, if those pirates are willing to part with 80 Billion dollars of their swag, what were they promised in return?

[cbsblogger]

Big Pharma spends huge amounts of money lobbying both Congress and physicians, and the marketing their products. The therapeutic value of their products should be able to stand on its own merit and not require megabucks in advertising to sell the public who still needs a prescription to obtain it. It is a huge cost of the product.

[sjc_1]

If they can not their way lobbying Congress and selling to physicians, they saturate the media with ads trying to get the prospective customer to promote the drugs to their doctors for a prescription.