UK Telegraph
There was much applause during President Donald Trump's 2020 State of the Union, but for at least a few seconds, Democrats interrupted the fanfare with chants of protest.
"After Trump called on lawmakers to deliver him a piece of legislation to dramatically lower drug prices in order for him to sign it, many Democratic lawmakers stood, held up three fingers and chanted "H.R.3."
"House Resolution 3, named the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act in the late congressman's honor, is a bill that would allow the government to negotiate lower prescription drug prices for those covered under Medicare. Affected drugs would include insulin products and 25 of the most expensive brand-name drugs that don't have generic equivalents.
"It passed the House with a 230-192 vote.
"The bill was declared "dead on arrival" in the Senate, and the White House indicated the president would have vetoed the bill if it had landed on his desk, the Washington Post reported in December." . . .
At issue was if other plans would work better: "Trump’s advisers had been in discussions with Pelosi’s staff for months over a possible deal, and Trump’s embrace of traditionally Democratic proposals to lower drug prices was a potential wild card in the bill’s fate.
"But Trump backed off the House proposal in recent weeks, saying Congress should focus its efforts on a bipartisan Senate Finance Committee proposal from Chairman Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa) and ranking Democrat Ron Wyden (Ore.) that would cap price increases in Medicare to the rate of inflation and limit seniors’ out-of-pocket costs. That bill is also unlikely to be signed into law — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) told the White House he is unwilling to bring up a bill that splits his caucus, and several Republicans have said the measure is akin to imposing price controls, which they have long opposed.
. . . "(The Cummings bill, of course, was anti-free market, making it the equivalent of rent control for medicine.)" . . . Andrea Widburg
There was much applause during President Donald Trump's 2020 State of the Union, but for at least a few seconds, Democrats interrupted the fanfare with chants of protest.
"After Trump called on lawmakers to deliver him a piece of legislation to dramatically lower drug prices in order for him to sign it, many Democratic lawmakers stood, held up three fingers and chanted "H.R.3."
"House Resolution 3, named the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act in the late congressman's honor, is a bill that would allow the government to negotiate lower prescription drug prices for those covered under Medicare. Affected drugs would include insulin products and 25 of the most expensive brand-name drugs that don't have generic equivalents.
"It passed the House with a 230-192 vote.
"The bill was declared "dead on arrival" in the Senate, and the White House indicated the president would have vetoed the bill if it had landed on his desk, the Washington Post reported in December." . . .
At issue was if other plans would work better: "Trump’s advisers had been in discussions with Pelosi’s staff for months over a possible deal, and Trump’s embrace of traditionally Democratic proposals to lower drug prices was a potential wild card in the bill’s fate.
"But Trump backed off the House proposal in recent weeks, saying Congress should focus its efforts on a bipartisan Senate Finance Committee proposal from Chairman Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa) and ranking Democrat Ron Wyden (Ore.) that would cap price increases in Medicare to the rate of inflation and limit seniors’ out-of-pocket costs. That bill is also unlikely to be signed into law — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) told the White House he is unwilling to bring up a bill that splits his caucus, and several Republicans have said the measure is akin to imposing price controls, which they have long opposed.
. . . "(The Cummings bill, of course, was anti-free market, making it the equivalent of rent control for medicine.)" . . . Andrea Widburg
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