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Senior Citizen Politics
Fireworks Surround Efforts in Finance Committee to
Add Drug Discount
Some of the money would have been used to close a
gap in Medicare coverage of prescription drugs for seniors
 Sept.
25, 2009 - The Senate Finance Committee on Thursday defeated an
amendment that sought to squeeze more money out of pharmaceutical
companies to help pay for the costs of changing the health care
system. The panel's vote was a victory for President Obama and Finance
Chairman Max Baucus.
The New York
Times: "The proposal, an amendment by Senator Bill Nelson,
Democrat of Florida, would have required drug makers to provide Medicare
with discounts in the form of rebates totaling more than $100 billion
over 10 years. Some of the money would have been used to close a gap in
Medicare coverage of prescription drugs. In 2007, more than eight
million Medicare beneficiaries fell into the gap, known as the doughnut
hole."
"Under the June agreement with the White House,
drug makers pledged $80 billion over 10 years to help 'reform our
troubled health care system.' In the belief that their contribution was
capped, drug companies have run advertisements in support of a health
care overhaul. The rebates proposed by Mr. Nelson would have more than
doubled the amount of money to be given up by the industry" (Pear and
Calmes, 9/25).
The Wall Street
Journal: "The measure would have allowed Medicare to purchase
drugs for low-income seniors at the same price that Medicaid pays for
the drugs" (9/24).
The Washington
Times: "The amendment failed on a 13-10 vote, with three
Democrats — Committee Chairman Max Baucus of Montana and Sens. Thomas R.
Carper of Delaware and Robert Menendez of New Jersey — joining
Republicans in opposing the amendment" (Haberkorn, 9/24).
The Washington
Post: "In the high-stakes battle over health care, the White
House and the drug lobby make an unusual -- and unusually powerful --
team." They used their muscle to fight back an effort by Democratic
senators, who "tried unsuccessfully to override a deal" struck months
ago between the industry, the White House and Chairman Baucus.
"If the
deal fell apart, industry allies warned, the drug lobby could pivot from
health-reform cheerleader to committed opponent armed with a $125
million war chest. … It also foreshadowed battles to come: Democrats in
both the House and Senate vowed anew to seek larger concessions from an
industry that spent $92 million in lobbying in the first half of this
year."
"The pharmaceutical fireworks came in an otherwise
sluggish third day of committee deliberations on Baucus's bill.
Republicans tried but failed to restore proposed cuts in the Medicare
program and to remove a requirement that every American carry health
insurance" (Connolly, 9/25).
Reuters:
"The Democratic-controlled panel defeated on a largely party-line vote a
Republican proposal to let individuals opt out of the bill's requirement
that everyone have health insurance. The plan would offer subsidies on a
sliding scale to help people buy it.
"Republicans said the issue was a
matter of personal freedom and questioned the constitutionality of
forcing people to purchase insurance. 'The individual mandate in this
bill is un-American. It may even be unconstitutional,' said Republican
Senator Jim Bunning, the amendment's sponsor.
"Democrats said the requirement was vital to the
success of the overhaul, which aims for a dramatic reduction in the
number of uninsured people living in the United States. 'The system
won't work if this passes,' (Finance Chairman Sen. Max) Baucus said of
the amendment" (Whitesides and Smith, 9/24).
NPR's Talk of The
Nation Thursday centered around the national debate on
requiring everyone take health insurance or face a penalty (9/24).
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This
information was reprinted from
kaiserhealthnews.org with permission from the Henry J.
Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser
Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives and sign up
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Sen. Baucus presents amended version of Finance
Committee bill; changes in Medicare, Medicaid provisions