1. The fastest-growing spending category in the National Health Accounts in 2001 was prescription drugs. At 15.7 percent, it was nearly double the overall rate of increase of health spending. K. Levit et al. “Trends in U.S. Health Care Spending, 2001,”Health Affairs(Jan/Feb 2003 ): 154 –156.
2. States are facing a collective budget deficit of $68.5 billion in FY 2004. National Conference of State Legislatures,State Budget Update: February 2003(Denver: NCSL, February 2003). On dropping services, see P. McMahon , “States Reduce Services, Drop Many from Medicaid Rolls,”USA Today, 12 March 2003 .
3. L. Korn et al. “Improving Physicians’ Knowledge of the Costs of Common Medications and Willingness to Consider Costs when Prescribing,”Journal of General Internal Medicine(January 2003 ): 31 –37.
4. M. Freudenheim , “Documents Detail Big Payments by Drug Makers to Sway Sales,”New York Times, 13 March 2003
5. ; and M. Freudenheim , “Drug-Plan Manager to Refuse Promotion Money from Makers,”New York Times, 18 March 2003 .