From the pharmaceuticals.
"New Mass. law allows drug coupons for prescription drugs" by Kay Lazar | Globe Staff, July 29, 2012
Every month, Bob Higson, a Framingham mechanic, has paid $300 out of his own pocket in copayments for arthritis medication that quiets his aching joints — and lets him keep working. Now, a new Massachusetts law will allow him to cover his costs by using pharmaceutical company coupons to get discounts on prescription drugs.
“As soon as the [law] was passed,” he said, “I signed up for the discount.”
Supporters argue the measure will make life-altering drugs more affordable for patients whose conditions can’t be treated with less expensive generic or over-the-counter medications.
But some consumer advocates and analysts say the coupons could drive up health care costs at the very time state lawmakers are striving to rein them in.
Related: Massachusetts Health Model Means Return of Hated HMOs
But they are calling it something different to make you feel better.
They say discounts will encourage use of brand-name drugs instead of less expensive alternatives, with one estimate showing drug costs for employers, unions, and health plans in Massachusetts could rise by hundreds of millions of dollars over the next decade as a result.
A longstanding ban against the coupons in Massachusetts — the last state to prohibit them — was lifted as part of the state budget signed by Governor Deval Patrick on July 8....
See: Working on Massachusetts State Budget Post
The coupon legislation was opposed by Massachusetts consumer groups Health Care for All and Masspirg, along with a consortium of health insurers. They pointed to a 2011 study by the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association, which represents companies that administer pharmacy benefits. That study estimated discount coupons will increase prescription drug costs nationally by $32 billion over the next decade if current trends continue....
You know something is up when the insurers oppose it. You $eeing who is going to benefit, right?
But the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, a trade group that represents drug companies, said in a statement that the coupons play a “valuable role generating better health outcomes and reducing the use of avoidable and costly medical care.”
Well, for $omebody in any event.
Eliminating the coupon ban was just one example of the drug industry’s success on Beacon Hill this year. Another measure loosened a 2008 ban on gift-giving from pharmaceutical companies to doctors.
The doctors then vouch for and prescribe the drugs.
Related: The Perils of One-Party Politics: Massachusetts' Democracy
Oh, KNOW I SEE WHY they had a GOOD YEAR! They WROTE the BILL!!
Drugmakers will now be allowed to pay for “modest” restaurant meals for physicians, as long as they are part of an informational briefing. The state Department of Public Health will have to define the meaning of “modest,” and drug companies will also have to report their spending to the state.
What they did was limit the gifts to $50 or less, meaning it was not enough to cover dinner for two in Boston.
Bon appetite, readers.
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