The nation's drug companies think it's only fair that they are compensated for the traces of pharmaceuticals that find their way into water supplies across the United States.

"We've spent a considerable amount of money developing our drugs - maybe not quite as much as we've spent promoting them, but almost. We can't stand by and watch our investment go down the tubes," claimed Alfonso Smith of the Pharmaceuticals Appreciation Council, a group that represents major drug companies.

"We're going to be demanding payment for the benefits our products add to the water supply of millions of Americans. We'll position it as 'value-added water.'"

Marketing consultant Rob Turbone suggests a better approach:

"Position it as a free trial offer. When people see how much better their lives are after exposure to a cocktail of residual drugs, they'll be lining up at pharmacies to order a full strength dose."

"Also our stodgy legal system may frown upon attempts to collect for exposure that was involuntary."

While the pharmaceutical industry indicated it was pleased that the presence of their products in the water supply "broadens our user base," the reaction of the rather large demographic of water-drinking Americans is less easy to predict.

"I already go to Canada to get my prescription drugs," said retiree Dorris Flipsmith of Rhode Island. "Maybe I can pick up some drug-free water as well."

Recent studies have found medicines for pain, infection, high cholesterol, asthma, epilepsy, mental illness and heart problems in water collected from dozens of cities.

"There's no reason to be alarmed. These amounts don't have any effect on people," said Stephan Oddcamp, one of the scientists involved in the study. "The drinking water in our building, for example, tests at one of the highest levels of anti-anxiety medications in the country, but you don't see us worrying about it, do you?"