These are two of the faces in the national debate over the rising cost of prescription drugs. They fight with equal passion for opposite sides of the cause. But Lichtenberg acknowledges that the system is far from perfect and the issue far from simple. The aging Medicare system doesn't encourage the efficient use of health-care dollars, not offering coverage for drugs that might prevent more expensive hospital stays that are covered. Developing drugs is a risky business, rife with failure.
Biotech companies contend they are particularly vulnerable.
Since most are not profitable, they depend on investors to fund their research. They say the answer is not to lower drug prices but to extend insurance coverage to more people, ensuring continued innovation and increasing access to it. Even with such price controls as those in Canada, Quirion and others like her still would spend much of their income on prescriptions, they say. Critics counter, however, that biotech and pharmaceutical companies could lower costs without sacrificing innovation. They note that the pharmaceutical industry is among the most profitable in the nation.