Rep. Mike Ross Raises Eyebrows With Healthy Haul - ProPublica

Rep. Mike Ross Raises Eyebrows With Healthy Haul - ProPublica: "Arkansas Rep. Mike Ross -- a Blue Dog Democrat playing a key role in the health care debate -- sold a piece of commercial property in 2007 for substantially more than a county assessment (PDF) and an independent appraisal  (PDF) say it was worth. The buyer: an Arkansas-based pharmacy chain with a keen interest in how the debate plays out."

"Two months after the 2007 sale, LaFrance's (the buyer) concerns about health care reform were spelled out in an article in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

'Universal health care will ruin our health care in America,' LaFrance told the reporter. 'There'll be long lines, they won't be able to get treated, potential doctors will be afraid to go into medical school, there will be an outflux of doctors -- in my opinion. It's not broke and don't fix it.'

Describing the drug industry as 'very big business,' he said the high prices charged for prescription drugs are possible only because insurance companies and the government underwrite about 95 percent of the cost.

'So when the customer pays $7, $10, $15, $20' for a prescription co-pay, 'it doesn't hurt him. They don't realize that the insurance company is paying the other $125. That's kind of a double-edged sword; if it wasn't for insurance, the American pharmaceutical industry wouldn't be able to charge the prices it charges today, because the public wouldn't put up with it,' LaFrance told the Democrat-Gazette.

'Our sales are higher, because it affects the top line of sales,' he added. If the government doesn't interfere, there's 'nothing but good days ahead.'"