SENATE DEMOCRATS COME TO THE AID OF MARK DAYTON
When the real reason the Senate Democrats have picked Dayton to lead their prescription drug efforts is so obvious and is highlighted in the article, are the really helping him?
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Dayton to head Democrats' drug policy effort
Sen. Mark Dayton, whose advocacy of lower prescription drug prices for seniors helped propel him into the U.S. Senate in 2000, announced Monday that he will be the lead senator in the Democratic minority on the issue of prescription drugs as he heads into a reelection cycle.
Flanked by about 25 senior activists from Minnesota in the State Capitol, Dayton unveiled a sweeping proposal that essentially rewrites the Bush administration's legislation of a year ago. Its chief feature is authorizing the federal government to act as a bargaining agent for 41 million Medicare beneficiaries and to negotiate lower prices with pharmaceutical companies.
"This is about survival," Dayton said. "People are being ravaged by escalating drug prices that are out of control." He charged that Bush's prescription drug policies essentially have been written by pharmaceutical companies and other corporate health-care interests.
Dayton said that his multifaceted proposal would be "the major reform legislation of the Democratic caucus in the next year." It includes provisions that would lower Medicare premiums, reduce gaps in coverage and prevent seniors from being forced into HMOs against their will.
"This has 2006 written all over it," said Steve Schier, a political science professor at Carleton College in Northfield. "They're [Senate Democratic leaders] trying to help Mark out."
But Democratic leaders said Dayton is an ideal sponsor for their party's central Medicare prescription drug proposal in Congress because he has long been a champion of seniors and a critic of President Bush's prescription drug overhaul.
"He's been one of the most articulate critics of the Bush Medicare bill, so he's been asked to sponsor our attempts to move forward with this legislation," said Jim Manley, a spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.
Congressional Democrats, most of whom voted against Bush's 2003 Medicare prescription drug plan, opposed its increasing reliance on private health plans and complained that the promised benefits would not go far enough. At the same time, some conservative Republicans balked at the $400 billion minimum price tag of the new Medicare prescription drug benefit, which begins in 2006.
A spokesman for the Minnesota Republican Party, Randy Wanke, said Dayton likely would not be a major player in any policy area, "because he has marginalized himself to the degree he is ineffective."
A winning issue
In the 2000 Senate race, Dayton, a former state auditor who failed in a 1982 bid for the Senate, was considered an underdog, despite his personal wealth as a department store heir. But he latched on to the fast-rising costs of drugs, took busloads of senior citizens to Canada to buy cheaper medicines and focused on the issue in TV ads. The tactic built a strong base of support among older voters, those most likely to vote, and helped Dayton beat a crowded field of DFLers in the primary and then incumbent Republican Rod Grams in the general election.
Since then, leading Minnesota Republicans, notably Gov. Tim Pawlenty and U.S. Rep. Gil Gutknecht, have bucked the Bush administration on prescription drug issues, particularly the issue of reimportation of cheaper drugs from Canada.
Dayton's bill would address some of the critics' concerns by allowing Washington to negotiate prescription drug prices directly with pharmaceutical companies, something the GOP bill explicitly forbade.
"The best way to achieve cost savings with a Medicare drug benefit is by having private health plans negotiate discounts with the pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies," said Jeff Trewhitt, spokesman for the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the main industry lobby group in Washington.
Dayton staffers said his bill would lower premiums for some Medicare recipients by eliminating the estimated $12 billion in subsidies the Bush plan contains for HMOs that administer drug benefits.
Dayton's bill would not reduce the $250 annual deductible and $35 monthly premiums that are scheduled to take effect for seniors who get the new Medicare drug benefit next year. Instead, Dayton would gradually eliminate the current law's scheduled gap in drug cost coverage between $2,200 and $3,600.
Dayton's bill does not address drug reimportation, but he co-sponsored a separate health care bill Monday with Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., that would legalize it for individuals. Source: Star Tribune, January 25, 2005
##
Dayton to head Democrats' drug policy effort
Sen. Mark Dayton, whose advocacy of lower prescription drug prices for seniors helped propel him into the U.S. Senate in 2000, announced Monday that he will be the lead senator in the Democratic minority on the issue of prescription drugs as he heads into a reelection cycle.
Flanked by about 25 senior activists from Minnesota in the State Capitol, Dayton unveiled a sweeping proposal that essentially rewrites the Bush administration's legislation of a year ago. Its chief feature is authorizing the federal government to act as a bargaining agent for 41 million Medicare beneficiaries and to negotiate lower prices with pharmaceutical companies.
"This is about survival," Dayton said. "People are being ravaged by escalating drug prices that are out of control." He charged that Bush's prescription drug policies essentially have been written by pharmaceutical companies and other corporate health-care interests.
Dayton said that his multifaceted proposal would be "the major reform legislation of the Democratic caucus in the next year." It includes provisions that would lower Medicare premiums, reduce gaps in coverage and prevent seniors from being forced into HMOs against their will.
"This has 2006 written all over it," said Steve Schier, a political science professor at Carleton College in Northfield. "They're [Senate Democratic leaders] trying to help Mark out."
But Democratic leaders said Dayton is an ideal sponsor for their party's central Medicare prescription drug proposal in Congress because he has long been a champion of seniors and a critic of President Bush's prescription drug overhaul.
"He's been one of the most articulate critics of the Bush Medicare bill, so he's been asked to sponsor our attempts to move forward with this legislation," said Jim Manley, a spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.
Congressional Democrats, most of whom voted against Bush's 2003 Medicare prescription drug plan, opposed its increasing reliance on private health plans and complained that the promised benefits would not go far enough. At the same time, some conservative Republicans balked at the $400 billion minimum price tag of the new Medicare prescription drug benefit, which begins in 2006.
A spokesman for the Minnesota Republican Party, Randy Wanke, said Dayton likely would not be a major player in any policy area, "because he has marginalized himself to the degree he is ineffective."
A winning issue
In the 2000 Senate race, Dayton, a former state auditor who failed in a 1982 bid for the Senate, was considered an underdog, despite his personal wealth as a department store heir. But he latched on to the fast-rising costs of drugs, took busloads of senior citizens to Canada to buy cheaper medicines and focused on the issue in TV ads. The tactic built a strong base of support among older voters, those most likely to vote, and helped Dayton beat a crowded field of DFLers in the primary and then incumbent Republican Rod Grams in the general election.
Since then, leading Minnesota Republicans, notably Gov. Tim Pawlenty and U.S. Rep. Gil Gutknecht, have bucked the Bush administration on prescription drug issues, particularly the issue of reimportation of cheaper drugs from Canada.
Dayton's bill would address some of the critics' concerns by allowing Washington to negotiate prescription drug prices directly with pharmaceutical companies, something the GOP bill explicitly forbade.
"The best way to achieve cost savings with a Medicare drug benefit is by having private health plans negotiate discounts with the pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies," said Jeff Trewhitt, spokesman for the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the main industry lobby group in Washington.
Dayton staffers said his bill would lower premiums for some Medicare recipients by eliminating the estimated $12 billion in subsidies the Bush plan contains for HMOs that administer drug benefits.
Dayton's bill would not reduce the $250 annual deductible and $35 monthly premiums that are scheduled to take effect for seniors who get the new Medicare drug benefit next year. Instead, Dayton would gradually eliminate the current law's scheduled gap in drug cost coverage between $2,200 and $3,600.
Dayton's bill does not address drug reimportation, but he co-sponsored a separate health care bill Monday with Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., that would legalize it for individuals. Source: Star Tribune, January 25, 2005
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