While it sometimes seems that the Utah Legislature is a high-powered bad-idea generator, it does produce some good ones.

One of those gems is legislation by Sen. Allen Christensen, R-North Ogden, that would help the state's poorest residents get better access to prescription drugs under Medicaid. It would also save Utah truckloads of money.

Senate Bill 42 authorizes the state Department of Health to create a preferred drug list, which would be used to negotiate large-volume discounts with pharmaceutical companies.

It's not a new idea. AARP and other Medicaid advocates pushed for the creation of such a list in 2005, but lawmakers balked at even authorizing a limited test. The fear was that a drug list would keep people from getting the medication they needed simply because it was not on the preferred list. This is not true. A doctor would always have the ability to prescribe an off-list medication, in his or her judgment, it was necessary for the patient.

While the health department is already authorized to implement the program, department officials chose to seek legislative approval rather than risk retribution from lawmakers upset by an end-run.

The preferred drug list is one of those ideas that should be embraced enthusiastically by our fiscally conservative Legislature. More than 30 states use preferred drug lists for their Medicaid programs with success. Texas, for example, saved $143 million in the 2005 fiscal year, while Florida saved $81 million in its first year. Utah health officials estimated in 2005 that even a limited test would save the state $5 million a year. With Utah budgeting $1.3 billion for Medicaid this year, and prescription drugs prices increasing faster than inflation, anything that can save money without degrading care should be tried.

Critics, including the pharmaceutical industry, claim that the list would keep people from getting the medicine they need, either by declaring it off limits or forcing doctors to wade through a morass of red tape and paperwork just to prescribe something not on the list.

Nonsense.

To be placed on the list, drug formulations must be clinically approved -- effective, not just cheap. Medicine that doesn't treat a condition is no bargain, no matter how low the price. Preferred lists are not declarations of what drugs are "legal" under Medicaid. As the name implies, they identify what is preferred for pricing purposes. If a doctor requires a formulation that is not on the list, deciding that it's the best choice for his patient, he can still order it. Such instances would be few, we expect.

If the opposition succeeds again at killing this common-sense measure, the state will continue to buy overpriced drugs, lining the pockets of those largely responsible for the runaway prescription drug costs facing us all these days. Medicaid is supposed to help the state's poor, not enrich major drug companies.

The Legislature must authorize the health department to proceed, or it must be prepared to explain to the taxpayers why it is wasting their money.