Bartlett: Medicare drug costs low enough already

[AnnInLa]

((There is a You Tube video of Bartlett's appearance on Chris Wallace's show today. He claims that Medicare drug costs are as low as they can go already.....no need to negotiate with Big Pharma, and save the taxpayers billions of dollars. Go see the video at:

http://thinkprogress.org/2006/11/12/bartlett-medicare-negotiate-prices/

Here are the facts about the Medicare prescription drug plan:

– Taxpayers “could save as much as $190 billion over the next 10 years” if Medicare negotiated prices with drug makers.

– Medicare pays substantially more for drugs that the Veterans Administration, which negotiates prices with drug makers.

– Since the program does not require any discount over list prices, “drug makers are being paid as much as 20 percent more for the same drugs that they had already been providing to recipients under the Medicaid program .”

The New York Times reports, “For big drug companies, the new Medicare prescription benefit is proving to be a financial windfall larger than even the most optimistic Wall Street analysts had predicted.” If Congress passes a bill allowing Medicare to negotiate lower prices, the drug industry is counting on President Bush to veto it.

video and more: http://thinkprogress.org/2006/11/12/bartlett-medicare-negotiate-prices/

[texpatriot2004]

1. Bartlett's wrong, way wrong. nm

[Selatius]

2. Bartlett is a messenger for Big Business in America

The White House under Bush is for Big Business. It serves their interests.

The drug industry has an addiction. That addiction...is greed.

[Rosemary2205]

3. My BIGGEST complaint on Part D is

that the part D law made it illegal for big Pharms to offer free drugs to anyone over 65 and required all seniors to pay full price in the donut hole. Now our sickest and poorist are paying $1000's a year where before they were getting drugs completely free through the PDA program.

Yes, we need to negotiate drug prices for everyone, but we also need to bring back the PDA program for very sick and very poor seniors so they can choose to opt out of part D and go back to getting their medications direct from the pharms completely free.

[Thickasabrick]

7. I agree - that was a huge loss for critically ill people who could

never possibly afford their meds. It's ludicrous that option went away with Plan D anyway. As usual, noone is looking out for the most vulnerable.

[eleny]

4. The difference next year is we chair the debate

Heh...heh...heh...

[Liberal Veteran]

5. He must have gotten some samples of Oxycontin from the Pharmalobby

...if he believes that.

[Thickasabrick]

6. He's just following the Cheney gameplan. Lie, lie, lie until it becomes

(or seems like) the truth.