House Dems Call For DOJ Investigation Into Debit Card Fees
Thursday, October 13, 2011 at 12:42PMBy Janie Amaya
A collection of House Democrats urgedAttorney General Eric Holder Thursday to open an investigation that would determine whether banks are violating antitrust laws by adding on monthly fees for debit card users.
Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) said that soon after Congress and the Federal Reserve Board took consumer protection actions limiting the ability for banks to collude with networks and set debit card fees, the banks quickly announced their intent of off-setting revenue loss through the consumer.
Welch, noting that only the Attorney General has the capacity to bring any violations to light, emphasize than when financial institutions work together to establish uncompetitive prices, competition is compromised.
“Credit cards and debit cards are very important to commerce and they provide great convenance to consumers, but they should be offered at a fair price; the price being established through competition,” Welch said during a press conference.
“There is enormous historical evidence of banks using their monopoly power to impose unfair anti-competitive burden on their depositors and on consumers,” Welch added.
Also present, Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) said, “When people in authority inspect, other folks will respect, and so having the attorney general look into whether there are anticompetitive practices will signal to the market that look, you can not engage in collusion.”
The representatives said they don’t have the capacity to draw to immediate findings of any violations by the banks, but said U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder does and should therefore should an investigation.
House Dems Seek “Fairer Pricing” For Prescription Drugs Within Health Reform
A group of Democratic Congressmen introduced proposals on Thursday known as the CARE (Cut Americans’ Rx Expenses) Package. This package would seek to reduce the costs of prescription drugs, and thereby create savings worth $190 billion dollars that could be applied to health care reform.
The package has three amendments which the Congressmen will seek to insert into the legislation. Rep. Jane Harman (D-Calif.) said that Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) agreed to support these proposals during mark-up.
Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) said that pharmaceutical companies “create life-extending, pain-relieving, life-saving drugs,” but also “charge very high prices and have an excessive control over the marketplace.”
Rep. Harman said that the first proposal seeks to reverse a 2003 law that passed 220-215, which prohibits the Health and Human Services Secretary from bargaining for lower prices for pharmaceuticals for Medicare D patients. She said the law represents a “poignant example of Congress’ failure to take meaningful action to rein in drug costs.”
According to Rep. Castor, the bill's second amendment allows a potential public option to “negotiate prices” and to establish a formulary. A prepared press release said that such a formulary would mean that “families who choose the public option are guaranteed the lowest cost for prescriptions.”
Rep. Betty Sutton said that the final provision “will require...drug manufacturers to pay a supplemental rebate when name-brand drugs exceed the current rate of inflation.” She said the companies “won’t have to pay these rebates if they decide not to jack up their drug prices above the rate of inflation.” She added that this proposal will incentivize drug companies to “show reasonable restraint, thereby making prescription drug prices more affordable.”
Rep. Kathy Castor (D-Fl.) noted that Americans pay higher prices for drugs than do consumers in other countries. Rep. John Sarbanes (D-Md.) said that the government has “terrific bargaining power.” He wondered “why shouldn’t the government in dealing with the pharmaceutical industry be able to go into the marketplace and use that bargaining power on behalf of seniors, on behalf of working families across the country?”
The members of Congress proposing this legislation include Reps. Jane Harman (D-Calif.), Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.), Kathy Castor (D-Fla.), John Sarbanes (D-Md.), Betty Sutton (D-Ohio), and Peter Welch (D-Vt.).