The original findings suggested a national saving of billions of dollars in treating the tens of millions of U.S. residents with elevated blood pressure. The pills, called diuretics, were already on the market, as medication for high blood pressure.

But, the conclusions seemed to threaten pharmaceutical giants like Pfizer that were making big money on blockbuster hypertension drugs, The New York Times said. That apparently helped make a difference.

The use of the inexpensive pills remained far smaller than some of the trial's organizers had hoped.

"It should have more than doubled," said Dr. Curt D. Furberg, a public health sciences professor at Wake Forest University and the first chairman of the study's steering committee. "The pharmaceutical industry ganged up and attacked, discredited the findings."

The six-year-old experience is worth remembering now, the Times said, at a time when officials seek ways to reduce runaway medical costs and improve care.