Edwards to Detail Health Care Plan - New York Times

A good start, and a substantive proposal.

Not what I would favor, as I favor a UK/Canadian style National Health Service, but it's an OK start, and good on the details.

Edwards to Detail Health Care Plan - New York Times

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: June 14, 2007

Filed at 11:56 a.m. ET

DETROIT (AP) -- Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards wants to reduce the cost of U.S. health care by removing patents for breakthrough drugs ...

Considering the fact that the Federal Government funds something like 80% of all Pharma research (need cite, this is memory), this is a good thing.

Also, this is a direct challenge to the idea of intellectual product (IP)law, such as copyright and patents, as being property law. It isn't.

Instead, IP Law is Public Interest Law. It says so in the constitution, in Article I, Section 8, Clause 8 of the Constitution. Congress is empowered "to promote the Progress of Science and
useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries."

This is not the money in your wallet, or your home. This is an exclusive license for use, more akin to a liquor license than property.

and requiring health insurance companies to spend at least 85 percent of their premiums on patient care.

I don't like my premiums paying for multimillion dollar bonuses for already rich executives. I like the fact that it's paying for generally uninformative TV ad blitzes even less.