US: The US Congress finally approved a landmark prescription drug Bill yesterday by a vote of 54 to 44. It marks the biggest reform in the American health system since Medicare was created in 1965.
The Bill, opposed by liberal Democrats for the huge windfall it represents to insurance companies and drug firms, includes a new prescription drug benefit for 40 million older and disabled Americans.
The $395 billion measure means seniors "will finally have the prescription drug coverage they need and the choices they deserve," said Senate Majority leader Mr Bill Frist.
"At the same time, it preserves traditional Medicare," he stressed.
However Democratic Senator Edward Kennedy, recalling how he voted for the original Bill 38 years ago, said it was a giveaway to insurers and drug companies and would dump seniors in the "cold arms" of private health organisations.
The victory is one of the most crucial for President George Bush's presidency, as it gives him a substantial domestic accomplishment to take into the 2004 election.
But in a setback for Mr Bush, Congress has dropped efforts to pass a major energy Bill backed by the White House this year after repeated attempts failed to find two additional votes needed to push the Bill through the Senate.
With the help of some conservative Democrats, the Republican majority in the Senate broke a filibuster against the Medicare Bill led by Senator Kennedy on Monday and moved to a vote yesterday morning.
The Bill will bring in prescription drug coverage from 2006, although retirees will be able to purchase a drug discount card next year that its backers say could reduce drug prescription costs by 15 to 25 per cent.
From 2006, seniors will be able to purchase coverage for their prescription drugs with premiums of $35 a month that would pay 75 per cent of costs up to $2,250.
If drug costs go above $5,100 the insurance would kick in again and cover some 95 percent of costs.
The Bill will also allow from 2010 a limited programme of direct competition between traditional Medicare and private plans, which some Democrats said would privatise the programme and encourage insurance companies to favour healthy seniors.
It is estimated that the Bill will direct some $125 billion over the next decade in extra assistance to the health care industry.
Some conservative Republicans opposed the Bill on the grounds that the costs would expand over the years.
The Bill prohibits the government from negotiating discounts directly with drug companies, a measure that Democrats say was inserted as pay off for the millions of dollars the pharmaceutical industry has poured into Republican election campaigns.