October 30 2009 show notes

  • Guests:
  • Topics:
    • "Brunch With Bernie," the longest running national townhall meeting (going on 6 years now!).
    • 'Anything Goes' Friday".
    • Health care bill, biologic drugs.
    • 'Town Hall' Friday.
  • Bumper Music:
  • Today's newsletter has details of today's guests and links to the major stories and alerts that Thom covered in the show, plus lots more. If you haven't signed up for the free newsletter yet, please do. If you missed today's newsletter, it is in the archive.
  • Quote: "Oh my god... the dead have risen and they're voting Republican!" -- Bart Simpson.
  • Article: House Health Care Bill: A Death Sentence For My Fellow Breast Cancer Survivors by Jane Hamsher.

    "I'm Jane, and I'm a breast cancer survivor.

    There was much celebration on Capitol Hill today with the announcement of the new House health care bill. For myself, as a three time breast cancer survivor, there was tremendous sadness and disappointment in the Speaker.

    Nancy Pelosi made a choice with regard to the lifesaving biologic drugs I took when I was in chemotherapy that will cost many of my fellow breast cancer survivors everything they own, and quite possibly their lives."

  • Article: Setting the Record Straight on Our Health Care Legislation by Rep. Anna Eshoo.

    "Like millions of Americans, I was thrilled by today's unveiling by Speaker Pelosi of the House health care reform bill, the Affordable Health Care for America Act. I was proud to stand with the Speaker and my Democratic colleagues in support of this historic legislation. Since coming to Congress more than 16 years ago, nothing has been more important to me than achieving comprehensive health care reform and as a member of one of the primary committees responsible for drafting the bill, few members worked harder than I did in bringing it to the House Floor. ...

    My amendment to create a new pathway for approval of 'follow-on' versions of innovative biotechnology products, or 'biosimilars,' will not deny patients access to these miraculous treatments. In fact, my legislation, sponsored by the late Senator Edward Kennedy, will create for the first time in our country's history an FDA approval process for biosimilars to compete with innovative biologics.

    Today, no expedited pathway for approval of a follow-on version of a biologic product exists. There are only generic versions of traditional, small-molecule drugs. For biologics, any prospective competitor to a brand-name product would have to go through the same lengthy and expensive approval process and clinical trials as the original manufacturer. As a result, there is very little economic incentive to develop a competitive version of a successful biologic."

  • Jacob has picked the most "creative" comment on his Halloween costumes. See what he dressed as today here. Camille won a signed copy of "Threshold" for her entry...

    Thank you Jacob Bankster
    For highlighting the crime
    For realizing the real robbers will never do the time

    Thank you Jacob Burger King
    Thank you Jacob Royal
    I wish all the kings and banksters could be flame broiled

    Thank you Jacob Madoff
    For giving back the gold
    Your generous spirit brings the warm in with the cold

    “Most Talented” in High School
    I could sing and I sang
    I could draw and I drew
    But I couldn’t for the life of me do Halloween like you!

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