Obama announces ($80B) agreement with drug companies

Yahoo! News ^

[wk4bush2004]

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama on Monday welcomed the pharmaceutical industry's agreement to help close a gap in Medicare's drug coverage, calling the pact a step forward in the push for overhaul of the nation's health care system.

Obama said that drug companies have pledged to spend $80 billion over the next decade to help reduce the cost of drugs for seniors and pay for a portion of Obama's health care legislation.

[wk4bush2004]

I wouldn't be surprised if the pharmaceutical companies were intimidated into doing this.

[jessduntno]

“I wouldn’t be surprised if the pharmaceutical companies were intimidated into doing this.”

And I am sure there will be no increases passed to the taxpayer...

[domenad]

I don’t get how you spend money to reduce costs. If spending the money produced a greater cost savings than your initial layout, wouldn’t you do it anyway?

[B.O. Plenty]

Just what I was thinking...we will know in a couple of days what threats were offered by prez Zer0.

I would bet the farm that a swarm of sleazy lawyers was involved...

[avacado]

"I don’t get how you spend money to reduce costs. If spending the money produced a greater cost savings than your initial layout, wouldn’t you do it anyway?"

Don't you remember back in the Slick Willy era of the tech bubble where Internet companies were losing $50 million per quarter but their stocks were going up so Slick and the Boys dubbed it the "New Economy."

We're back to that nonsense I suppose.

[Venturer]

They were either blackmailed or bought.

Drug companies dont come out of the goodness of their hearts to give away 80 Billion dollars.

[rbg81]

Exactly—this will be paid for by increasing prescription prices for everyone else.

[henkster]

They were told that this is the deal and they need to go along with it or be nationalized.

However, the risk is that they might next hear:

“I am altering the deal. Pray I don’t alter it any further.”

[bannie]

[RebelTXRose]

My first thought: “Did he threaten them?”

[jessduntno]

Please...you are scaring the children...

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Yup. Divide and conquer.

[KarlInOhio]

Either your signature or your brains will be on the contract.

Rather than the press's opinion yesterday that Obama is like a father all of us, I think he is more like The Godfather to the country.

[True Republican Patriot]

GOOOOLLLLYYYYY!!! Was Hillary ugly then or was Hillary really UGLY then??? Olde Bill musta been realy hard up for some action to marry that! No wonder The Bent One found Monica Lewinsky ravishing:-)

[ditto h]

A drug now costs $100. A customer pays a $5.00 co-pay. If that same drug will sell for $80.00, does the co-pay for the customer go down?

[Brad from Tennessee]

[I don’t get how you spend money to reduce costs. If spending the money produced a greater cost savings than your initial layout, wouldn’t you do it anyway?]

Obama’s from the school of big-city machine politics. He is accustomed to large blocks of constituents who assemble, applaud and vote in lockstep. He is a sloganeer. I felt like laughing and crying Friday when AP asked the White House if people could keep their current health plan and doctor as Obama. A spokesman said the President “didn't intend for his remarks to be taken literally.”

[Aria]

We’re not supposed to take anything zero says literally? Sheesh! I suppose our enemies have figured this out also.

Zero makes Clinton look like an honest man.

[squarebarb]

Don’t be silly.

She looks quite pretty.

He looks predatory.

[sportutegrl]

This one actually IS Bush’s fault.

[ltc8k6]

$80B over 10 years?

Less than a drop in the ocean...