This is horrible news.
The Defense Department is projected to reduce spending by $1.67 billion on prescription medications sold in retail pharmacies in fiscal 2010, following the full implementation of Section 703 of the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal 2008.
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For the past several years the DoD has paid commercial rates for prescription drugs purchased in the Tricare retail pharmacy network; however, the DoD is included in the 1992 Veterans Health Care Act as one of the “big four” government agencies entitled to federal prices when it purchases pharmaceuticals for its beneficiaries.
The DoD currently receives federal ceiling prices, the maximum price that can be charged for brand name drugs in military treatment facilities and the Tricare Mail Order Pharmacy. Through authority provided in Section 703 of the 2008 NDAA and the “final rule” implementing the regulation, the DoD will now get these same discounts in the Tricare retail pharmacy network.
Don't they realize that the pharmaceutical companies are already hurting enough in this economic downturn. When faced with a decision to buy food or treat their toenail fungus, erectile dysfunction and restless legs, what are most Americans going to do?
Next someone will get the idea to apply the savings towards the Medicare Part D donut hole victims.
Try Not to Sing Along
2 months ago
1 comment:
You know what would be really crazy? If we just re-wrote Part D to allow the government to negotiate! Oh, but that would be a free-market solution, and the Republicans who wrote Part D HATE the free market. Right? Isn't that what they keep telling us about healthcare - no free market?
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