MICHAEL C. DORF Was the Deal Capping Drug Cost Savings Inappropriate?

MICHAEL C. DORF
Was the Deal Capping Drug Cost Savings Inappropriate?
FindLaw columnist and Cornell law professor Michael Dorf discusses the following deal, which recently was made by the Obama Administration: The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) has agreed that it will give $80 billion worth of discounts to patients over ten years, and spend $150 million for advertising in support of the President’s health care plan. In exchange, the White House has agreed that savings from drug discounts will be capped at the $80 billion; the government will not use its purchasing power to negotiate deeper price cuts. Dorf contends that there are problems with the deal -- but the involvement of industry is not among them. Instead, Dorf says, it is the free speech implications of the bill that should give us pause, for even if the deal does not technically violate the letter of the First Amendment, it does violate the Amendment's spirit. Wednesday, September 9, 2009

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