Drug companies run America and pocket taxpayer $$$$

[FormerRepublican]

"WASHINGTON - The new Medicare drug benefit will give drug companies up to $2 billion in extra profits this year because they're no longer required to pay rebates on drugs bought by the government for the elderly poor.
The hefty windfall raises new concerns that the Bush administration won't fully realize its promises of lower drug prices in the troubled new program.
The boost in profits comes from a shift in the drug coverage of 6.4 million poor and elderly people from Medicaid to the new Medicare drug benefit. Unlike Medicaid, which requires drug companies to charge their lowest or "best price" for medications, the Medicare program relies on competition among private drug plans to keep prices low. By eliminating the need to discount drugs for the government, the industry can now pocket the savings.
"The net effect over 10 years is probably closer to $40 billion in extra profit," said Stephen Schondelmeyer, a pharmaceutical economics professor at the University of Minnesota"

http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/politics/13777954.htm

I get tired of reading in the news every day that Bush has handed yet more taxpayer dollars to huge corporations. If Bush wants to give corporations money, he needs to give them his own and NOT ours!!!

[spindrifter]

1. With the left hand, they pump profits

to the drug companies and with the right hand they give a SOTUS speech calling for tort reform. This is utter B.S. And then there is the third hand in there telling us we can all start saving for our medical costs.

[sandnsea]

2. Ending rebates was supposed to help

I think Edwards campaigned on this. The theory is always relying on traditional market supply/demand and that any savings in cost will reduce price. Not any more. Savings in cost go to the stockolder and CEO, over and over again.

[OneBlueSky]

3. the Medicate drug plan legislation was written by . . .

the pharmaceutical and insurance industries and their lobbyists . . . and it's becoming clear that they did so in a way that will greatly benefit their industries at the expense of medical "consumers" -- the people we used to call patients . . . disgusting . . .