WASHINGTON, DC – August 16, 2022 – On August 16th, President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) lowering the cost of prescription drugs for Medicare recipients and people in the Health Insurance Marketplace. After the Senate ratified the bill, Biden told reporters, “When you sit down at that kitchen table at the end of the month, you’re going to be able to pay a whole hell of a lot more bills because you’re paying less in medical bills.”
America is the only developed nation in the world where a citizen can become destitute because of the high cost of health care. Cash-strapped hard-working Americans have to compromise their health by spending their limited resources on food and shelter instead of prescription medicine.
Some of the provisions of the IRA are:
- The federal government will be able to negotiate prices of certain drugs with drug companies
- Insulin co-payments are capped at $35 a month
- Out-of-pocket costs for prescription medicines are capped at $2,000 annually
- Drug companies will offer rebates if drug prices outpace inflation
Notable impacts are:
- Between 1-2 million people will save on the cost of their prescription medicine
- In 2020, over 3 million Americans needed insulin to treat diabetes. It is estimated that many insulin-dependent people will benefit from this bill.
Listen to the full report below:
Contact: Dick Needleman, Health reporter, 103.3 AshevilleFM, healthyasheville@ashevillefm.org