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The Senate on Monday effectively killed a measure that would have let Americans buy discount prescription drugs from foreign suppliers, which sponsors said could have saved consumers billions of dollars. At the same time, with this veto the Senate has also ensured that affordable health insurance will continue to elude American consumers unless it becomes state or federally funded.

At the Chicago Tribune the story is summarized for readers; "by a 49-40 vote, senators approved a provision requiring the government to certify that imports are safe - a step the Bush administration is unlikely to take. The amendment, offered by Sen. Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), was seen as a major victory for the pharmaceutical industry."

The argument is that by allowing discount prescription drugs over US borders, counterfeit drugs could find their way into the system.

But whether or not this is the case, the final outcome is that affordable health insurance has once again slipped away.

The rising costs of prescription medications are one of the main reasons that health care costs have skyrocketed in recent years. These drugs are expensive, and they are prescribed more today than ever before, party because doctors are often incentivized to do so, and partly because Americans are so very unhealthy today.

Sadly, at least for the time being, what has been called the "poison pill" that killed American access to discount prescription drugs has also killed the hope for better insurance options.