Precis som i Sverige så genomgår det amerikanska sjukvårdssystemet just nu en allvarlig kris allteftersom amerikanerna lever längre.

Medicinpriserna har skjutit i höjden och utan en nationell sjukförsäkring så drabbas medelklassen och de fattiga oerhört hårt.

Nu har flera delstatsregeringar försökt hjälpa de mindre bemedlade klara de skyhöga medicinpriserna. Genom att som den kanadensiska regeringen själva gå in på marknaden och köpa medicin i volym så kan amerikanska delstatsregeringar fylla det tomrum som den nyliberala federala regeringen vägrar fylla.

Miljoner amerikaner tvingas idag köpa subventionerad medicin från Kanada men Bush-regeringen försöker stoppa försäljningen med hänvisning till den amerikanska Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act som trädde i kraft i januari i år men som är mindre fördelaktig än den kanadensiska medicinen.

Det finns mer om den kaliforniska regeringens program på Medi-Cal

Jordan Rau skriver i Los Angeles Times om Kaliforniens viktiga initiativ för att få ner medicinpriserna här i delstaten:
Schwarzenegger, Democrats Agree on Drug Discount Plan Governor’s plan to compel manufacturers to lessen costs of medicines for lower- income Californians.

More than 5 million Californians with moderate incomes would receive substantial discounts on prescription medicines under a deal that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democratic leaders reached over the opposition of the drug industry, negotiators said Tuesday.

The price-reduction effort, a showpiece for Schwarzenegger’s reelection campaign, is an approach he rejected last year and one opposed by the drug industry and advocates for the poor and disabled.

The plan would give the drug industry three years to voluntarily negotiate discounts with the state on behalf of people who earn up to triple the federal poverty level, or about $60,000 a year for a family of four. An additional 400,000 people who earn somewhat more but face debilitating medical bills also would be eligible.

The discounts would take as much as 40% off brand-name drugs and up to 60% off generic medicines, according to lawmakers and Schwarzenegger administration officials.

In a major concession, Schwarzenegger agreed that companies that offer insufficient markdowns could be impeded from selling drugs through Medi-Cal, a $2-billion market that serves millions of Californians. In return, Democrats agreed to give the industry time to comply, and agreed to the income limit Schwarzenegger wanted.

The deal appears to end a three-year battle that produced two competing ballot initiatives that were rejected by voters in last November’s special election. One was sponsored by consumer advocates, the other by the drug industry.

“This is a huge victory for the needy,” said Assembly Speaker Fabian Nuñez (D-Los Angeles). “This goes a long way toward correcting the wrong that was done at the ballot box in November.”

Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata (D-Oakland) concurred: “The governor’s basically done everything the sponsors asked.”