Letter: State’s drug-price lawsuit validated

Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2002 | 8:48 a.m.

As attorney general of Nevada and someone who is deeply committed to consumer protection, I want to thank your newspaper for its Jan. 23 editorial, "State right to sue over drug prices."

The last line of the editorial, "The state should not be overcharged for ensuring the quality of people's health," is obvious. So, too, is the reason for our action: that groups or individuals could be overcharged, not merely by accident but by willful intent. It's not simply about getting tax dollars back, though that may very well be a result. A principal objective is to ensure that pricing instruments -- therefore prices -- are driven not by some contrived mechanism as in this case, but by sensible market behavior. A systematized means of directing consumers toward purchases with higher margins for the provider, but no effective difference for the consumer other than increased cost, is a middleman's license to steal.

When we say something is unfair, oftentimes it's not because consumers aren't making the right choice, it's because consumers aren't informed that choice exists; when we say the price of something is too high, oftentimes it's not the size of the number, it's the value of the product relative to price.

Like you said: We did our homework, and drug prices are too high.

FRANKIE SUE DEL PAPA