One doesn't have to look very far to find a glaring example of why I oppose the so-called health care reform bill before Congress.

The Telegraph newspaper in London recently reported that the British government declared that it will not pay for a new drug proven to extend the lives of patients suffering from rare cancers of the blood and bone marrow, including two forms of leukemia.

Authorities are prohibiting the nearly 700 patients a year who are eligible for the treatment from getting the drug because it's too expensive.

This disturbing news is further evidence for why I oppose the reform bills before Congress. If the government is allowed to take over even more of our health care sector I fear it will further ration care in America, just as is happening in England under government controlled medicine.

The Telegraph quotes a patient advocate who says "Azacitidine is just one of the many drugs for rarer cancers to be rejected by [the government health system] in the past year. The current system is failing people with rarer cancers. It's time for a more flexible approach -- one that doesn't rule you out if you have the wrong kind of cancer."

Doctors should make treatment decisions based on what is best for the patient, not based on the cheapest option for the government.

Sen. Pat Roberts

R-Kan.