Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards is proposing that cash payments could replace long-term patents for developers who are advancing new therapies. Edwards made the comments as part of his argument that healthcare costs have risen too high in the U.S., giving the country one of the most expensive systems in the world without improving the quality of the care that is delivered. He also wants to require health plans to spend a minimum of 85 percent on care in a new system that would require all Americans to sign up for health insurance.
- here's the AP report on the new ideas