This past Thursday, a bill was approved by a U.S. Senate Finance Committee that would give the government the power to negotiate for better Medicare prescription drug prices.

This means that the pharmaceutical drug industry may have to tone down those 1,000% markups on many major drugs and settle for, gasp, lower profits. So be it, I say.

Since President Bush threatened to veto an earlier House bill on the same subject, this new Senate bill would require (not just permit) direct negotiation over prices by the government with drug companies.

What do you think? Should the government get involved in the private drug industry like this?