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Associated PressEdwards to detail health care planBy DAVID AGUILAR, Associated Press Writer
8 minutes ago
DETROIT - Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards wants to reduce the cost of U.S. health care by removing patents for breakthrough drugs and requiring health insurance companies to spend at least 85 percent of their premiums on patient care.
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Edwards' plan would remove long-term patents for companies that develop breakthrough drugs and then reap large profits because of the monopolies those patents provide, according to a statement by Edwards obtained Wednesday evening.
Edwards said offering cash incentives instead would allow multiple companies to produce those drugs and drive down prices. He also was expected to detail a plan requiring health insurance companies to justify their rates by requiring them to spend at least 85 percent of the premiums they collect on patient care. He said New York, Minnesota, New Jersey, Florida already impose similar requirements.
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"Americans today aren't getting the quality of health care they pay for and can't afford the cost of the care they do receive," he said.
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