Why You Can't Afford Health Care

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The U.S. pharmaceutical industry, in close collaboration with Republicans, has been working for years to jack up the price of prescription drugs, as Americans find themselves paying more for less health care -- and there's no end in sight, with insurance executives predicting premium increases of 15 to 25 percent annually. Currently drug companies are waging what the Associated Press describes as "a successful lobbying and public relations battle" to fight legislation that would enable cheaper, generic drugs to enter the marketplace. Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), the drug makers' lobby group, has been fighting the proposed legislation by trotting out celebrity spokespersons and running deceptive advertisements that show a sick child with the headline, "Pray for a Miracle, Because Generic Drugs Will Never Cure Him." (And if he can't afford non-generics, that means he'll just die, right?)