Sen. Richard Burr says health reform bad for drug industry

North Carolina’s Senator of the moment, Richard Burr, spoke out strongly at a GlaxoSmithKline forum yesterday, stating that government involvement in health reform would adversely affect the drug industry. How? They might make fewer profits and have less incentive to bring all those desperately-needed (and heavily advertised) drugs to market.

Burr’s other comment was just as illuminating. When asked to point to how government involvment in health care was detrimental to the system, he mentioned Medicare and Medicaid. Burr should know that right here in North Carolina we have a national model Medicaid primary care program – Community Care – that is providing first-class health care to children and parents and saving – that’s right, saving – the state hundreds of millions of dollars every year. Look like private insurance could stand to learn a thing or two from North Carolina’s Medicaid program. That’s good, because nobody will learn much of anything from Senator Burr.