WAXMAN TAKES ON DRUG MAKERS OVER MEDICARE

[polichick]

As the health care debate focuses on whether cost cuts are looming in Medicare coverage, Representative Henry A. Waxman is on a crusade to save Medicare billions of dollars — in a way that he says would end up helping the elderly.

That is because the money would come from the drug industry, which is why Mr. Waxman may have a fight on his hands.

Drug makers contend they have already worked out a 10-year, $80 billion cost-savings deal with the White House and crucial Senate gatekeepers on the trillion-dollar health care overhaul. The industry says that trying to add Mr. Waxman’s provision could scuttle that agreement.

“You not only break the deal, but you break the bank for us,” said Billy Tauzin, chief executive of the drug industry’s trade group, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, known as PhRMA.

At issue is a multibillion-dollar “windfall” that Mr. Waxman contends the drug industry received when drug benefits were added to Medicare coverage in 2006. Mr. Waxman, Democrat of California, is chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and is central to the House’s legislative efforts on health care.

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“We don’t have any deal with them, and the whole enterprise of doing health insurance for all Americans isn’t to make the drug companies happy, or wealthier,” Mr. Waxman said. “They’re going to make a lot of money when we insure all Americans. There’s no argument for them to get a windfall.”


http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/26/health/policy/26dual.html


Good to see that Waxman is continuing the work of Senator Kennedy on this issue!

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. Waxman is a fighter just as Teddy was!

My hat's off to him...

K&R

:fistbump:

[polichick]

2. We need more Congresscritters like those two!

:hi:

[pinto]

3. Kick.

:kick:

[Klukie]

4. Huge kick

[Rosa Luxemburg]

5. Medical appliance costs should be lowered too

If you ever have to pay for a medical appliance they are EXPENSIVE. Special support stockings can be $100 a pair or more.

[polichick]

6. That's for sure - $100 for stockings is highway robbery!! nt

[Rosa Luxemburg]

8. I'm sure they could make these for a lot less!

that goes for other appliances. My husband has sleep apnoea and his little mask without all the other bits cost over $200! The price of dental appliances is astronomical!

[JimWis]

7. K&R

[ProSense]

9. Good for Waxman, who is one of the biggest supporters of the House bill

The Energy and Commerce Committee approved H.R. 3200, "America's Affordable Health Choices Act," by a vote of 31 to 28. This legislation will build on what works in today's health care system, makes important insurance market reforms to protect consumers, encourages competition among insurance plans to improve choices for patients, and expands access to quality, affordable health care for all Americans.

"Today is a historic moment for the House of Representatives and a defining moment for our country," said Chairman Waxman. "It is a significant victory that all three committees in the House have worked together to pass comprehensive health reform legislation for all Americans. This bill will deliver the results the nation's health care system so desperately needs: lower costs, better quality, and broader coverage. I hope that when we return from recess, the House will act expeditiously to enact this bill into law."

The legislation contains critical insurance reforms to protect consumers. Insurance companies will no longer be able to discriminate on the basis of pre-existing conditions or drop coverage for those who become seriously ill. Insurers will no longer be able to discriminate on the basis of gender or selectively refuse to renew coverage. And they will be required to fully cover regular checkups and preventative care without cost-sharing and abide by limits on how much they can charge for out-of-pocket expenses.

The legislation also changes the structural costs in the health care system. It lays the groundwork for major reforms in the delivery system that will over time help improve the quality of care and put us on a path towards constraining the cost of our health care system. The bill is fully paid for and is deficit neutral.

The legislation is supported by hundreds of organizations representing doctors, surgeons, nurses, hospitals, providers, consumers, labor, researchers, state and local governments, public policy institutions, and others.

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