Billy Tauzin, the republican congressman who led the effort in the U.S. House to pass the Medicare prescription drug benefit, now works for Pharma, the leading lobbying group for the mega-flush pharmaceutical industry.
The account on CBS's Web site is a must-read. Most democrats voted against the prescription drug benefit because of the fact that negotiation on prices with drug companies was prohibited. While watching Michael Moore's "Sicko" today, I was dismayed to see my own Iowa Senator Charles Grassley standing next to Bush as he signed the bill into law. Normally a hawk for cost controls, Grassley sold his soul to the devil on this one.
It's not too late to do something about this. Seniors could be saving hundreds of millions of dollars more on their prescriptions if Medicare was allowed to negotiate prices with drug companies. Congress can go back and change the rules. What are they waiting for? Do they need a few more democrats in congress? Help is on the way, in a little more than a year, the majorities will be stronger. I wonder how many little old ladies will have to choose between food and medicine until then?
By the way, what was Billy Tauzin's reward for passing this abomination of a bill? A two million dollar per year salary. Fifteen other congressional staffers who helped pass the bill are now lobbying for the pharmaceutical industry.
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