PHARMA's Tauzin: "They blessed the deal. It's up to the WH and Senator Baucus to follow through."

[flpoljunkie]

White House Affirms Deal on Drug Cost
by David D. Kirkpatrick

Mr. Tauzin said the White House had tracked the negotiations throughout, assenting to decisions to move away from ideas like the government negotiation of prices or the importation of cheaper drugs from Canada. The $80 billion in savings would be over a 10-year period. “80 billion is the max, no more or less,” he said. “Adding other stuff changes the deal.”

After reaching an agreement with Mr. Baucus, Mr. Tauzin said, he met twice at the White House with Rahm Emanuel, the White House chief of staff; Mr. Messina, his deputy; and Nancy-Ann DeParle, the aide overseeing the health care overhaul, to confirm the administration’s support for the terms.

“They blessed the deal,” Mr. Tauzin said. Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the House was not bound by any industry deals with the Senate or the White House.

But, Mr. Tauzin said, “as far we are concerned, that is a done deal.” He said, “It’s up to the White House and Senator Baucus to follow through.”

As for the administration’s recent break with the insurance industry, Mr. Tauzin said, “The insurers never made any deal.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/06/health/policy/06insure.html?_r=2&hp

[brentspeak]

1. Worm Emmanuel met at least twice with industry stooge Billy Tauzin

[OwnedByFerrets]

2. Ya sleep with stray dogs, you get fleas.

[flpoljunkie]

3. Ezra Klein: "This is going to be a big deal."

This is going to be a big deal. It exposes the soft underbelly of the administration's current strategy: There's no industry opposition because the bill doesn't threaten any of the relevant industries. That's also, at least in part, why it doesn't save any money.

But I imagine the folks at 1600 Pennsylvania are pretty pissed at Tauzin today. It's one thing to make that deal. It's another thing to see it on A1 of the New York Times. But Tauzin is so confident in the White House's desire to retain his support that he could spill the whole thing to reporters in an on-the-record interview and be assured that he'll face no reprisals. His argument this morning was that the White House has given his industry immunity, and Congress has to respect that. We'll see whether it will.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/ezra-klein/2009/08/has_the_white_house_given_the.html

[Jakes Progress]

4. Headline should read. "Tauzin Spits on President"

Let's hope the sub-head isn't "President Says 'Thank you. May I have another'"

[liberalpragmatist]

5. To be honest, I can kind of understand the deal

Don't get me wrong - big pharma is scum and we absolutely should be negotiating prices down. But given how powerful special interests are in the United States, and how strong the lobbies control votes in Congress, it makes sense that the Administration would want to pick its battles and minimize opposition for now. Pharma companies helped kill ClintonCare. If you can get them to at least hold their fire that you can at least other aspects of reform - coverage, first and foremost - accomplished, and punt on drug prices for the time being.

[Raineyb]

6. If you punt on drug prices you might as well through out the coverage too.

It will be the always escalating drug prices that make the public option too expensive to keep up and eventually kill it. That's what big Pharma is counting on.

[liberalpragmatist]

7. Long term I agree

And look, don't get me wrong - if Congress can get Medicare-bargaining power through, I'm all for it. All I'm saying if that if the choice right now is a choice between no bill or a bill that doesn't really tackle the pharmaceutical companies at the moment, I'll take the latter. Civil rights, for example, didn't do everything at once. As I see it, none of the bills that pass are going to do enough for cost control - they'll expand coverage and they'll do something for cost control, but we're going to have to revisit them in a few years. If drug bargaining is one of the things that needs to be put aside for the time-being, so be it.

[grantcart]

8. It is impossible to take on Pharma the AMA and the insurance industry

This will be worthwhile if it seriously damages the HC insurance industry and seperates out the doctors from the power triangle.

It also reduces prices by $ 80 Billion over 10 years.