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Drug prices outpace inflation

WASHINGTON - In the three months after President Bush signed the Medicare drug law in December, the prices of the most common prescription drugs used by older Americans increased nearly three times faster than inflation, the AARP reported Wednesday.

"Some manufacturers were very aggressive," said John Rother, director of policy and strategy for the nation's top advocacy group for older people, which released the study. "It is disappointing to see such jumps after legislation was signed that ensured the drug companies a broader market."

The study by the AARP Public Policy Institute examined 197 brand-name drugs most commonly used by Americans older than 50 and found their price increased by an aggregate 3.4 percent. During the same period, the inflation rate was 1.2 percent.

A drug industry spokesman said government data shows prices of medicines have increased at the same rate as other health care services since the Medicare bill was signed.

"The facts are clear. We urge AARP to turn its efforts to signing up as many seniors as possible for the Medicare-endorsed discount cards," said Richard Smith, vice president of policy, research and strategic planning for the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the drug industry's trade organization.

Smith said the cards offer large discounts and, for low-income couples, up to $2,400 of extra help between now and the end of 2005.

WASHINGTON - An animal suspected of having mad cow disease based on a new rapid screening test has turned out to be uninfected, the Agriculture Department said Wednesday.

Agriculture Department chief veterinarian John Clifford said more sophisticated testing conducted at the National Veterinary Services Laboratories in Ames, Iowa, showed the cow was free of the disease.

The government has said that the new rapid testing is highly sensitive and known to produce false positive results for mad cow, known formally as bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE.

ATLANTA - The percentage of American children with no health insurance has dropped to the lowest level on record because of expanded state programs, the government said Wednesday. But the ranks of working-age adults without coverage are up slightly since 1997.

Only 10.1 percent of U.S. children were uninsured last year, the lowest level recorded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 1997, 13.9 percent were not covered by health insurance.