Democrats attack health secretary on pre-existing conditions
Source: NYTimes
WASHINGTON Democratic senators blistered President Trumps health secretary on Tuesday, telling him that the Trump administrations efforts to undo health insurance protections for people with pre-existing conditions made a mockery of the presidents campaign to rein in prescription drug prices.
The secretary of health and human services, Alex M. Azar II, told Congress that he would be glad to work with lawmakers on legislation alternatives to the Affordable Care Act, modifications of the Affordable Care Act to provide access to insurance for people with pre-existing conditions.
The decision regarding pre-existing conditions is a constitutional and legal position, not a policy position, Mr. Azar told the committee.
Mr. Azar also conceded that Mr. Trumps promise late last month that drug companies would come forward with voluntary massive drops in prices within two weeks might not be fulfilled by that deadline. He told Congress on Tuesday that several drugmakers wanted to reduce prices but were reluctant to do so for competitive reasons.
Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/12/us/politics/alex-azar-pre-existing-conditions-drug-prices.html
bucolic_frolic
(43,287 posts)Pre-existing conditions are in the U.S. Constitution? Hello? What are they saying - property rights preclude social welfare and all insurance is socialism?
still_one
(92,396 posts)YOHABLO
(7,358 posts)Found this on Wikipedia:
Effective January 1, 2012, Azar became President of Lilly USA, LLC, the largest division of Eli Lilly and Company, and was responsible for the company's entire operations in the United States.[17] Prices for drugs rose substantially under Azar's leadership.[18] In connection with the position, Azar served on the board of directors of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization, a pharmaceutical lobby.[19]
What a fucking joke.
ProfessorGAC
(65,168 posts)How would lowering prices not be a competitive advantage?
Is Azar suggesting that lowering the price, if everyone else didn't do it was the result of the drug companies getting together to fix prices?