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Wednesday, September 17, 2003
Conservatives have threatened to scuttle the Medicare drug benefit bill. The conservatives in question, led by Pennsylvania's Patrick Toomey, were reluctant to endorse the bill to begin with. The sticking points: price controls, desired competition, health care savings accounts, and capping the cost of the entitlement. Lawmakers are wise to seek such a compromise, but how easily they can gain these concessions from the liberal wing of the legislature, who view any competition, and privatization, as anathema to failure, is still in question.
After the Congressional Budget Office issued their report which stated the costs of the proposed program will easily exceed the initial $400 billion, the conservatives began to have second thoughts about the bill. When the vote was last taken, it passed by only one vote.
Perhaps the Senate will come to a consensus and allow for compromise, but if history is any indication, there will be riders galore added to the final product, resulting in myriad "pork" projects likely to cost as much as the anticipated savings from the original compromise. But I digress...
If Congress is serious about entitling seniors to a prescription benefit, they had better consider the implications of removing competition from the equation. When drug companies have no incentive to do research on new products, new products will not come to fruition. Then, drugs will be provided for much reduced rates to seniors, but at what cost?
If anyone seriously thinks the drug companies are in business to screw the little guy, think again. It is in their best interest to provide affordable pharmaceuticals, but at reasonable margins of profit. The market should determine "reasonable margins", not the government.
Price controls will have a similar effect. To wit, price controls have never worked in a positive way, yet they have often led to product shortages. This will likely be the case if the present version of the entitlement bill comes to fruition.
Centrist and leftist Senators should consider the proposal of the conservatives in this case. Everyone wants affordable medication. No one wants shortages, or lack of industry investment. The current bill would be a harbinger of the latter.Labels: Archives_2003
.: posted by
Dave
7:39 PM
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