Disparate Rx Remedies Surface on Hill

The bad news: There are competing plans on Capitol Hill for remedying rising Pentagon prescription drug costs. The good news: At least lawmakers came up with a plan. The Pentagon offered none. The Congressional newspaper The Hill reports that the plans surfaced by the House and Senate are “on a collision course.” Part of the problem are the drug discounts that the Pentagon thought it was entitled to but which drug makers have balked at paying for prescriptions sold through retail pharmacies. All of this, of course, is part and parcel of the Pentagon’s larger problem with health care costs overall. A solution other than raising fees for retirees is still in the making.