Bush Threatens Veto of Bill Designed to Lower Drug Costs

The House approved legislation Friday requiring the government to negotiate with drug companies to lower the prices of medicines for Medicare patients.

Despite a veto threat from the president, Democrats used their majority status to push through another of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's priorities for the first 100 hours of the new Congress. The vote was 255-170.

The idea behind the bill is using the sheer size of the Medicare program to generate steeper discounts than private insurance plans can muster.

"Forty-three million people can have the purchasing power to perhaps encourage these drug houses to give the government and the American retirees a better price," said the bill's author, Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich.

However, the bill's prospects dim after Friday's vote. President Bush has said he would veto the bill if it makes it to his desk. He said that competition is already reducing prices for seniors and creating an environment that encourages the development of new drugs.