PhRMA is ... exactly what it sounds like

February 22, 2010 4:33 PM

The Legacy of Billy Tauzin: Paul Blumenthal of the Sunlight Foundation details the complicated set of meetings that allowed the now retiring head of prescription drug lobby group PhRMA (derided in a popular Obama campaign spot) to secure influence on the health care bill in exchange for their endorsement. The White House officially announced its health care plan today.

Blumenthal on Fresh Air (mp3). From the Sunlight Foundation piece:

In Baucus’ press release, Tauzin is quoted as saying, “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and, working together, we can make this hope for a better tomorrow a reality today.” This “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity also extended to the pharmaceutical industry’s ability to blunt the long-term Democratic agenda of lowering prescription drug prices through Medicare negotiations, re-importation and quicker release of generics onto the market. After making such a grand statement of support through cost cutting proposals it was time for the pharmaceutical industry to finally force the White House and Democrats to take certain chips off the table.

posted by l33tpolicywonk (19 comments total)

Tauzin has a point. It's not a democracy unless all corporate donors have their views represented.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 4:39 PM on February 22, 2010 [1 favorite]

The President’s new health care bill does not include a public option, but it does increase the maximum penalty for failure to comply with the mandate to buy health insurance, which rises from 2% to 2.5% of annual income (PDF).
posted by Joe Beese at 4:44 PM on February 22, 2010

Beginning in April of this year, States will be allowed to expand Medicaid eligibility to more individuals. Starting on January 1, 2014, all low-income, non-elderly and non-disabled individuals will be eligible for Medicaid. This includes unemployed adults and working famlies – all people with income below $29,000 for a family of four (133% of poverty).

The Federal Government will support States by providing 100% of the cost of newly eligible people between 2014 and 2017, 95% of the costs between 2018 and 2019, and 90 percent matching for subsequent years.

Yes, instead of providing the money directly, let's provide that money if the state feels like it.
posted by Pope Guilty at 4:46 PM on February 22, 2010

Yes, instead of providing the money directly, let's provide that money if the state feels like it.

This laboratory of democracy sucks and I would like to complain to the institutional review board.
posted by enn at 4:58 PM on February 22, 2010 [2 favorites]

[Couple comments removed. There's probably a good way to make your point without lighting the thread on fire in the process.]
posted by cortex at 5:31 PM on February 22, 2010

"Just chill people. Obama's got this thing!"

I fell for that one too.
posted by Flex1970 at 5:42 PM on February 22, 2010 [4 favorites]

I'm not sure if anyone really gets how the president's plan is going to cut costs. To project that far into Medicaire is just difficult. To project that far into any spending is difficult.

Listen, unless fee-for-service medicine is stopped and as long as the government is as huge a player in health care as it is, and the population curve continues as it is, no plan is going to "work".
posted by skepticallypleased at 5:46 PM on February 22, 2010

the population curve continues as it is

You are aware that the Baby Boomers are the largest generation before or since and that once the Baby Boomers die off, there's fewer people around, right?

Think of it like a shared internet connection. Right now, some asshole is downloading thirty anime series and five movies on bit torrent, and the rest of us just have to suffer through it. But pretty soon, he's going to move out, and we won't have nearly the bandwidth problems we're having now and I think I've already strained this metaphor oh god
posted by Pope Guilty at 6:11 PM on February 22, 2010 [2 favorites]

and I think I've already strained this metaphor oh god

I hope it's got health insurance.
posted by sallybrown at 6:14 PM on February 22, 2010 [1 favorite]

I'm not sure if anyone really gets how the president's plan is going to cut costs.

Didn't he say at the beginning of this process that government participation in the healthcare market was going to increase (introduce?) competition? And that private insurers shouldn't fear competition?

Presumably, government participation --> increased competition --> lower prices.

Of course, all of the above ignores the fact that government is the de facto long-term "low-cost competitor" in that scenario because it can sustain losses indefinitely on the backs of their "customers" (taxpayers), whereas private insurers wouldl eventually go bankrupt.
posted by ZenMasterThis at 6:22 PM on February 22, 2010

Of course, with only 50 votes needed for the 'reconciliation patch' it would be easy to include the public option. But of course Obama is opposed to adding it even though Reid said he would back it and several senators have come on board already.

Can't put those campaign dollars at risk or anything.
posted by delmoi at 7:36 PM on February 22, 2010 [2 favorites]

only eighteen comments on this issue -- i don't get it. is there another health care thread open?
posted by angrycat at 8:20 PM on February 22, 2010

or rather, eleven. now tweleve. something beginning with a one, anyway.
i'm hoping that his releasing it today before (hopefully) dominating Thursday's cage match makes reconciliation happen. If I'm wrong, I hope I find out somehow gently, like on a day when nothing fucking else goes wrong.
posted by angrycat at 8:30 PM on February 22, 2010

One day, a PhRMA lobbyist looked around at the mountain where he lived and decided that he wanted a change. So he set out on a journey through the forests and hills. He climbed over rocks and under vines and kept going until he reached Congress.
The Congress was fractious and shallow, and the PhRMA lobbyist stopped to reconsider the situation. He couldn't see any way across. So he ran up Pennsylvania Ave and then checked down Pennsylvania Ave, all the while thinking that he might have to turn back.

Suddenly, he saw universal health care legislation sitting on the steps of the White House. He decided to ask the legislation for help getting across the stream.

"Hellooo Mr. Health Care Legislation!" called the PhRMA lobbyist across the water, "Would you be so kind as to give me a ride on your back across Congress?"

"Well now, Mr. PhRMA lobbyist! How do I know that if I try to help you, you wont try to kill me?" asked the health care legislation hesitantly.

"Because," the scorpion replied, "If I try to kill you, then I would die too, for you see health care costs are ballooning at more than three times the rate of inflation!"

Now this seemed to make sense to the health care legislation. But he asked. "What about when I get close to passing the Senate? You could still try to kill me and get back to the shore!"

"This is true," agreed the PhRMA lobbyist, "But then I wouldn't be able to get to the other side of Congress!"

"Alright then...how do I know you wont just wait till we get a bill on both sides of Congress and THEN kill me?" said the health care legislation.

"Ahh...," crooned the PhRMA lobbyist, "Because you see, once you've taken me to the other side of this legislature, I will be so grateful for your help, that it would hardly be fair to reward you with death, now would it?!"

So the health care legislation agreed to take the PhRMA lobbyist across the Congress. He swam over to the bank and settled himself near the mud to pick up his passenger. The PhRMA lobbyist crawled onto the health care legislation's back, his sharp claws prickling into the health care legislation's soft hide, and the health care legislation was introduced into the Senate. The muddy currents of politics swirled around them, but the health care legislation stayed near the "mainstream" so the PhRMA lobbyist would not drown. He kicked strongly through the first half of the Congress, his flippers paddling wildly against the popular current.

Halfway across the river, the health care legislation suddenly felt a sharp sting in his back and, out of the corner of his eye, saw the PhRMA lobbyist remove his stinger from the health care legislation's back. A deadening numbness began to creep into his limbs.

"You fool!" croaked the health care legislation, "Now we shall both die! Why on earth did you do that?"

The PhRMA lobbyist shrugged, and did a little jig on the dying health care legislation's back.

"I could not help myself. It is my nature."

Then they both sank into the muddy waters of the swiftly flowing but shallow politcs of America.

"Self destruction - Its my Nature", said corporate America in chorus..."

posted by ennui.bz at 9:11 PM on February 22, 2010 [2 favorites]

only eighteen comments on this issue -- i don't get it. is there another health care thread open?

The bad guys won. What is there left to be said?
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 9:18 PM on February 22, 2010 [2 favorites]

I am the antithesis of a business type, so it's really hard for me to understand how many of the executive types in the pharma sector can't seem to figure out the implications of it costing $100,000,000 to make the first dose of a drug and $0.30 to make the second dose.

In unrelated news, are there any examples of private health insurance companies going bankrupt or even showing a loss in the biggest economic down turn in fifty years?
posted by Kid Charlemagne at 6:04 AM on February 23, 2010

The best part is, KC, that most of the cash that goes toward developing those drugs is paid for by the federal government, which spends hundreds of millions a year on R&D funding for private companies... which then insist that they deserve to recoup the cost of R&D!
posted by Pope Guilty at 6:46 AM on February 23, 2010

“Just chill people. Obama's got this thing!”

Just bothers me. And the negation as well. Besides the point. Obama could be the greatest president we’ve ever had or the worst, doesn’t much matter. The ball was dropped as soon as everyone started laying it on him one way or the other.

He sucks, he’s great, it’s his fault, he’s got it, he blew it – doesn’t matter.
The only thing that matters, and this negated the only reason I voted for him, is that they (him, his campaign, his administration) didn’t keep up with the whole social network activism thing.
If that existed then there could have been enough pressure to move this, and a number of other things, in a different way. I do lay some blame at folks in the network themselves, no reason not to keep going.
But there was a lot of emotional investment in Obama, nothing wrong with that in and of itself, but once the object of that shifts away – there’s a kind of emptiness and lack of motivation.
I think to some degree that as inevitable, so some of the criticism of the Obama hype, etc. is warranted. But had they not turned their backs on the network they themselves created I think there would have been a lot more influence to bring to bear. Especially on congress and on both parties which is pretty much the jugular here. Not Obama.

I did think that he would need the network and there would have been more grassroots involvement. Less hierarchy, more collaboration. Necessary when you're a bit of an outsider.

Didn’t happen.

Maybe because he got co-opted. Maybe because the game (as in hunting) is just too damn big. Sure, they have billions of dollars, but I’d’ve thought that facing an entrenched established opponent would have favored a broader based, cooperative approach that reframed the struggle.
Too many strange bedfellows perhaps.

Or I suppose because it requires folks’ involvement. The Sons of Liberty actually went out and did things and communication and cooperation was a huge part of that.
And that’s an indictment of both sides of the equation. Bit more of the folks in power, it’s easy to just pull the plug. But I thought the folks who were getting off the couch for the campaign would still be up and around, especially for stuff like healthcare.
It’s a movement just looking for leaders. And enough pressure could have made Obama (or, more relevantly the Dem party currently in power) run like outsiders and follow the grassroots leaders.
Not only doesn't it look like no one wants the job, it looks like no one wants anyone to have the job.
I'd like to think someone somewhere in government has got a plan and is looking 20 years out for certain things set in place now to come to fruition. But I don't think so. Unless you're living away from the high rollers and power brokers, you're at best a tourist.
Always thought Obama was smart and his best quality was that if we got our own back and put the boot into some senators he would not be in the way.
But you've still got to get your own back.

That said, the Sunlight Foundation is pretty great.
posted by Smedleyman at 2:54 PM on February 23, 2010 [1 favorite]

Smedleyman, how exactly did Obama turn his back on the network?

Cause h ave there been omissions? Yes. He didn't do what he needed to do over the summer. Somebody fell asleep at the switch in terms of the Mass race, that much is clear.

But turn his back? Maybe you're right, but I don't know specifically what you're getting at.
posted by angrycat at 5:05 PM on February 23, 2010