Prescription drug plan bites Blago

Still lamely portraying himself as the champion of the people, Gov. Rod Blagojevich continued his magical mystery tour of New York media outlets Tuesday, even as 59 Illinois senators considered more evidence in his unprecedented impeachment trial in Springfield. A devastating example of Blagojevich's alleged mismanagement and abuse of power is the "I-SaveRx" prescription drug program. Created by Blagojevich amid much fanfare in 2004, the program was supposed to save money for older, lower-income Illinoisans by importing cheaper drugs from Canada. Blagojevich got the publicity he coveted, even though the program was branded illegal by the federal government. He repeated his support of the program as late as Friday, when he said: "Allow me to call witnesses [in his impeachment trial] like Gov. Jim Doyle of Wisconsin and Gov. Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas or Sens. Ted Kennedy and John McCain, who all worked with me on the issue of reimportation of prescription drugs, going to Canada to get cheaper medicines for our senior citizens so that they can afford their medicines and their groceries, a charge that they're trying to kick me out of office on." But now comes word that the Canadian supplier for I-SaveRx has pulled out, complaining that the program was poorly promoted by the Blagojevich administration. Listen to the frustrations felt by Lewis Jorgenson, a spokesman for Pegasus Health Services Ltd. of Calgary, Alberta: "It looks good in the press, that they're starting the I-Save program, but they just talk about it, there's no action, so it's just a waste of everybody's time." Jorgenson said the state had not followed through on promoting the program after it was created, leading to unspecified financial losses for his company. As of last summer, only about 5,000 Illinoisans were participating in I-SaveRx. Pegasus Health Services filled its last I-SaveRx prescription on Dec. 31, leaving program participants in the lurch. No one from the Blagojevich administration would comment on Jorgenson's complaint. Blagojevich, of course, was on his interview tour in New York. The program's creation is one of many impeachment items against Blagojevich because, according to the state House, it broke federal laws and may have violated state laws on pharmacies and drug inspection. I-SaveRx typifies Blagojevich's approach to his job: announcing a spashy new program that makes him look good, but then failing to put in the necessary time and effort to make it work. It is one more reason why the governor deserves to lose his job.