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The Swine Flu Affair Decision-Making on a Slippery Disease (1978) / Chapter Skim
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8 Legislation
Pages 49-53

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From page 49...
... WAXMAN. It's your view that the insurance industry is not acting responsibly when they are asking to charge three or four times the usual rate for a vaccine that does not offer significant risk, while at the same time they are insuring vaccination programs where there are more substantial risks involved.14 Congressman Andrew Maguire of New Jersey joined his colleague Waxman in sharp questioning.
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From page 50...
... . we are going to find a way, either with or without the help of Congress, to carry out this program that is absolutely essential, a program that was recommended to me unanimously by 25 or 30 of the top medical people in this particular field.16 He also asked Mathews to call Rogers and to draft him a letter for Rogers, which Cavanaugh actually did.
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From page 51...
... When manufacturers expressed some interest anyway, its sponsors promptly found that they could not get enough underwriting for their own plan. They were able to get the "first" level of potential costs covered (for high fees)
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From page 52...
... Ford was concerned and said so: HEW Secretary Mathews and the leaders of Congress reported to me Wednesday that after long hours of hearings, discussions, negotiations, Congress finally would act yesterday to pass legislation to provide swine flu vaccine to all the American people. Needless to say, I was keenly disappointed to learn last evening that the news from the doctors in Pennsylvania had led to another slowdown in the Congress.
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From page 53...
... Some others, however, were secretly sorry. For numbers of those who now had dirty work to do, coping with disgruntled states, fending off a captious press, making a late start on a no-longer shiny program (and discounting a pandemic, as by now many did)
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Key Terms

  • tort claims
  • drug companies
  • flu program
  • manufacturers expressed
  • subcommittee held

  • claims act
  • insurance industry
  • doses sat
  • subcommittee staff
  • own bill

  • medical risks
  • asked mathews
  • severe pressure
  • congress reported
  • colleague waxman

  • level built
  • price tag
  • short hearing
  • promised rogers
  • insuring vaccination

  • taft cleared
  • meeting cooper
  • american people
  • insurance pools
  • temporary absence

  • senate acted
  • nor abroad
  • hyde kept
  • days swine
  • meeting ford


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