Gibbs Won't Say What White House Gave Drugmakers To Gain Their Support
First Posted: 08-13-09 05:10 PM | Updated: 08-13-09 05:50 PM
NBC's Chuck Todd put the question directly to Robert Gibbs after the White House spokesman denied that a deal outlined in a memo obtained by the Huffington Post was accurate.
"Stepping back a minute on the PhRMA deal, are we to believe that PhRMA didn't get anything for their agreement on the $80 billion; that they did not get anything in return from the White House, any pledges, promises, winks, nods, whatever? Are we to believe nothing was promised to them?" he asked.
"Well, again, I'm simply -- was responding to what the question was about a memo that I think both sides..." Gibbs responded, before Todd cut him off.
"Forget the memo a minute," Todd said. "Can you answer that -- can you answer that question? Were they -- can you say for sure they were promised nothing in return?"
Gibbs ducked the question. "I can assure you that we've come to an agreement to seek some savings from the pharmaceutical industry as part of comprehensive health care," he said, declining to say what PhRMA was offered in return.
"And at what point are you going to release, then, the facts of the deal with them and with the hospitals and with a couple of these stakeholders that have come here and made these pledges and you guys have..." Todd followed up.
"I think some of this is going to be written into legislation that we'll hopefully see going through Congress relatively soon," said Gibbs.
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"Should we -- you know, why not release it now? Why not say what it is?" Todd asked.
"Again, as I said yesterday, some of that agreement -- some of those agreements are up on the Finance Committee Web site," said Gibbs.
But there is, in fact, nothing on the Senate Finance Committee website about what the committee or what the White House offered PhRMA in exchange for its commitment to support reform and shave $80 billion in costs.
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cHECK OUT THE COMMENTS FROM HUFFINGTON POST - LIBERALS ARE IN REVOLT.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/08/13/gibbs-wont-say-what-white_n_259061.html
