The speaker went looking -- and found Big Pharma.

As Speaker Nancy Pelosi sat down to put the finishing touches on the House health care bill Wednesday night, the California Democrat was stuck between four competing directives.

The first three, handed down by President Obama, required that the bill must not cost more than $900 billion over ten years, must not add "one dime" to the deficit and must not require the pharmaceutical industry to pony up more than $80 billion, in accordance with a deal struck between the White House, the Senate Finance Committee and the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA).

The fourth, foisted on her by her conservative Democratic members, required the public health insurance option to negotiate rates with health care providers. She had been unable to find 218 votes for a more "robust" version of the public plan -- with reimbursements tied to Medicare rates -- which would have saved taxpayers $85 billion over ten years.

That meant Pelosi had to find $85 billion somewhere. The speaker went looking -- and found Big Pharma.


Read more at: Huff Po