Gov. Bill Owens on Wednesday killed two bills that supporters said would lower the cost of prescription drugs for low- and middle-income families.
Senate Bill 102 called for Colorado to join a multistate purchasing pool to buy prescription drugs at a discount for patients enrolled in Medicaid, the insurance program for the poor.
House Bill 1152 established the state-run Colorado Cares Rx program that would let middle-income families buy prescription drugs at the discounted rate.
“At a time when our state’s budget is extremely strained, creating a massive new health- care program is fiscally irresponsible,” Owens wrote in his veto message. The bill creating a drug list limits “options of physicians to prescribe the correct medication for their patients,” Owens wrote.
By vetoing the bills, which Democrats considered landmark achievements, Owens sparked another round of intense debate over the merits of the bills and motives of state lawmakers.
Sen. Bob Hagedorn, D-Aurora, a sponsor of the vetoed bills, said the measures would have saved millions of dollars by lowering drug costs, allowing the state to offer more medical services to the poor.
Labor union leaders lamented the vetoes while groups representing the disabled were overjoyed.
Mitch Ackerman, president of Local 105 of the Ser vice Employees International Union, said: “Gov. Owens made a shameful choice today. He chose big pharmaceutical company profits over responsible fiscal policy for Colorado taxpayers.”
Julie Reiskin, executive director of the Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition, said, “I think the governor showed a lot of political courage by not caving in to sound-bite politics.”
Owens vetoed five other bills Wednesday, raising his tally this session to 35.
Staff writer Chris Frates contributed to this report.
Staff writer Mark P. Couch can be reached at 303-820-1794 or mcouch@denverpost.com.
