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Among other things, Schwarzenegger signs into law legislation giving discounts on prescription medicines SACRAMENTO - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger trumpeted a season of legislative triumphs with a flurry of bill signings Friday, including bills that will affect everyone from low-income prescription drug consumers to hybrid drivers to television watchers to vendors who sell Vietnamese rice cakes. He signed 179 bills and vetoed 115, leaving around 175 to be signed today, the constitutional deadline to consider legislation. In total, Schwarzenegger has signed 800 bills and vetoed 189. Whether it was environmental protections, raising the minimum wage or providing discounted prescription drugs, many...

Telephone companies can dive into California's $5.3 billion-a-year cable TV industry under a law signed Friday by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. He said the measure, backed by millions of dollars in corporate contributions, will offer consumers better service and lower prices. Rushing to beat a midnight Saturday bill-signing deadline, the Republican governor joined with Democratic legislative leaders Friday to also back programs lowering the cost of prescription drugs for poor Californians and to test thousands of volunteers for possible toxic contamination. All three bills could serve as models for other states and the nation, supporters said. AT&T Inc. and Verizon Communications...

09/29/2006 GAAS:698:06 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Governor Schwarzenegger Signs Legislation to Make Prescription Drugs More Affordable for Uninsured Californians Following through on his long-standing commitment to bring down the cost of prescription drugs for low-income Californians, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today signed AB 2911 by Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez (D-Los Angeles) and Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata (D-Oakland). “Lowering prescription drug costs is a significant part of making health care more affordable for all Californians,” said Governor Schwarzenegger. “This legislation will provide meaningful discounts to uninsured Californians who may risk their own health by not taking life-saving medication simply because it’s...

In late August, Gov. Schwarzenegger and legislative Democrats struck a blow for the "needy" – defined as families making up to three times the federal poverty level, or about $60,000 a year. They did this by agreeing on legislation that links deep discounts in drug prices for uninsured individuals and families to the states' Medicaid program, Medi-Cal. Manufacturers who don't offer "acceptable" prices to the state negotiators would find their drugs removed from Medi-Cal's list of drugs approved for millions of Medi-Cal patients... California's plan is pure demagoguery, price controls masquerading as government compassion. While the plan may help some...

Ensuring that all Californians have access to the vital prescription medication they need to live long and healthy lives is an important priority for our state. However, we believe a misguided proposal recently passed by the Legislature and awaiting action by the governor is the wrong approach for our state, one which threatens the development of new drugs and undermines access to critical medications for Medi-Cal patients. Assembly Bill 2911, authored by Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez, D-Los Angeles, enacts a prescription drug discount plan that will provide drug subsidies for some Californians through what is effectively a price control scheme....

Hubris is defined as "Overbearing pride or presumption; arrogance." That is what came to my mind as I saw this press release come over the transom from the Governor's office: Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger issued the following statement after the Assembly approved AB 2911 by Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez and Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata: "This plan is just what the doctor ordered for millions of low-income Californians who pay the most for their prescription drugs but can least afford them. With prescription drug costs contributing to more than 8 percent of health care inflation, this is a critical step...

SACRAMENTO - Giving an election-year boost to millions of lower-income Californians, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and legislative Democrats reached a deal Thursday that will require prescription drug companies to offer set discounts for medications or face possible sanctions. The California Prescription Drug Initiative will give discounts of about 40 percent for name-brand drugs and 60 percent for generics to people who otherwise would have to pay full retail price. The enrollment fee will be $10 a year. The plan, announced earlier this week but formally approved Thursday, will affect more than 5 million uninsured, lower-income individuals, Schwarzenegger said in a statement....