Drug Industry to Run Ads Favoring White House Plan

[babsbunny]

Drug Industry to Run Ads Favoring White House Plan

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/09/health/policy/09lobby.html?_r=1

By DAVID D. KIRKPATRICK
Published: August 8, 2009

WASHINGTON — The drug industry has authorized its lobbyists to spend as much as $150 million on television commercials supporting President Obama’s health care overhaul, beginning over the August Congressional recess, people briefed on the plans said Saturday.

The unusually large scale of the industry’s commitment to the cause helps explain some of a contentious back-and-forth playing out in recent days between the odd-couple allies over a deal that the White House struck with the industry in June to secure its support. The terms of the deal were not fully disclosed. Both sides had announced that the drug industry would contribute $80 billion over 10 years to the cost of the health care overhaul without spelling out the details.

[Heidi]

1. Bloomberg: CVS Sees Higher Sales From Coverage for Uninsured

Aug. 7 (Bloomberg) -- CVS Caremark Corp. is supporting U.S. legislation to provide health coverage for tens of millions of uninsured, saying it would result in a “meaningful” expansion of drug use that may boost sales.

Newly insured individuals tend to increase prescription drug use by 60 percent to 100 percent, said CVS Chief Financial Officer David Rickard. Previous coverage expansions lifted CVS’s retail sales as well as revenue from managing benefits, he said. The company is the largest U.S. drugstore chain.

“The behavior is absolutely predictable and the increase is not subtle,” Rickard said in an Aug. 4 interview. “Anything that increases coverage will be good for our company’s business.”

www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aDbZw_0zQtWQ|Read more]

[geckosfeet]

3. This is excactly why they favor it. They see $$$'s.

[bluestateguy]

2. Well, maybe that will convince the 4 Republicans in the New Jersey delegation to vote for the bill

nt

[notesdev]

4. Which should be a red flag

that anything coming out of this bill is for the good of big corps, not for the people.

When they jam more text into a bill than any person can reasonably read, then demand it be passed in a hurry, chances are nearly 100% that it is a bad deal for you and me.