All Medicare fight-back initiatives in the House to date
In December, Chet Edwards, a Texas Democrat, with more than 70 cosponsors, introduced HR 3672, to authorize HHS to negotiate Rx prices.
This week, one of those cosponsors, Dennis Moore, a first-term Kansas Democrat, introduced HR 3707, which at first glance is nearly identical, and has a handful of cosponsors including Jo Ann Emerson, Missouri Republican, who was not on Edwards’s bill.
http://www.house.gov/edwards/releases/pr_031209.html
http://www.house.gov/moore/nr-Meds-1-21-04.htm
Benjamin Cardin, a Maryland Democrat, this week, without cosponsors, introduced HR 3702. It provides authority to negotiate prices, “guaranteed prescription drug benefits,” full reimbursement for qualified retiree prescription drug plans, repeal of the comparative cost adjustment (CCA) program, repeal of the MA Regional Plan Stabilization Fund, and repeal of cost containment provisions.
Also this week Robert Wexler, a Florida Democrat, introduced two bills. HR 3710 (no cosponsors) specifies procedures under which pharmacists and wholesalers - and, in some cases, individuals - could reimport most drugs from Canada and directs that these procedures be instituted through regulations. The bill provides, however, that the regulations shall “contain any additional provisions determined by the Secretary to be appropriate as a safeguard to protect the public health or as a means to facilitate the importation of prescription drugs.” HR 3711, with three cosponsors, repeals the premium support demonstration programs now set to start in 2010.
http://www.wexler.house.gov/press_releases/Jan_21_04.htm
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Sidney J. Socolar
PHANYC Representative to APHA Governing Council
Phone 212-666-5925
Fax 212-316-1405