[ OUR OPINION ]

Court ruling is prescription
for lower drug prices

THE ISSUE The nation's high court has upheld a Maine law that was the model for a Hawaii law aimed at reducing prescription drug prices.

HAWAII residents burdened with the entire cost of their prescription drugs have received encouragement from the U.S. Supreme Court that prices could plummet. The high court gave its approval yesterday of a Maine program similar to a Hawaii law slated to take effect next year. State officials should promptly make any changes necessary to allow the Hawaii program to begin on schedule.

The Maine program, called Maine Rx, will force drug manufacturers to negotiate with that state for lower prices paid by consumers who don't have prescription drug insurance. Under the program, pharmaceutical companies would be under pressure to offer rebates similar to those they accept on drugs sold through the Medicaid program of medical assistance to the poor.

If the companies refuse to reduce prices after three years, they could face repercussions in their treatment under Medicaid. The program is aimed at benefiting more than 300,000 Maine residents who lack medical insurance.

The Maine Rx program had been upheld by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia but had been put on hold pending the high court's decision. Another law, called Healthy Maine Prescriptions, designed to lower prices for uninsured low-income residents, was struck down by the federal appeals court in December and will be reviewed by the Supreme Court.

Hawaii Rx is scheduled to take effect in July 2004, along with another program, Healthy Hawaii, patterned after the other Maine law. Unlike Healthy Hawaii, which would benefit residents making less than triple the poverty level, Hawaii Rx would result in lower prices for all of the state's 220,000 uninsured residents regardless of income; essentially, the Hawaii Rx program would render Healthy Hawaii unnecessary.

The delayed start-up dates in Hawaii were adopted by the Legislature in last year's session because of the pending court cases. Democratic Rep. Roy Takumi of Pearl City, who sponsored the legislation, called the Supreme Court's decision "a huge ruling" that will allow Hawaii Rx to go forward. He is confident the ruling will require no changes in the Hawaii program's features, which were carefully tailored to overcome any legal challenges. "We believe it's a clean law," Takumi said.

While the Maine Rx program has received bipartisan support in that state, President Bush urged the court to strike it down and Governor Lingle has criticized the Hawaii version. Lingle instead has offered a two-year program supported by a $3 million grant from the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation to provide free prescription drugs to the low-income people most in need. Only about 20,000 people would benefit.

The Lingle alternative, while immediately helpful, is inadequate in coping with the skyrocketing prices of prescription drugs, which have increased by at least 15 percent annually in recent years. The governor should cooperate with legislators in assuring implementation of the Hawaii Rx law while preventing credible legal challenges.