In his State of the Union address Thursday night, President Biden is expected to urge Congress to focus on proposals to lower prescription drug costs, including capping prescription drug out-of-pocket costs for all Americans and allowing the federal government to negotiate broader drug prices. . medicines used.
These two proposals expand on steps taken in the Inflation Control Act of 2022, which for the first time allowed Medicare to negotiate prices on 20 expensive drugs used by many Americans with diabetes, arthritis, and heart disease. is. The federal government is negotiating prices for the first 10 drugs this week with drug companies, and the companies are expected to submit counter-proposals soon.
If the president's proposal becomes law, that number would be expanded to 50 prescription drugs to treat cancer, heart disease and diabetes, government officials said.
In his speech, the president called on Congress to extend the $2,000 prescription drug co-pay cap, currently slated to apply to seniors in 2025, to all Americans with private insurance. Being watched.
Both of Biden's proposals would require substantial action from Congress at a time when Congress is struggling to pass an annual budget. Congress remains close, and the president is expected to seek bipartisan cooperation to expand these health care savings, but President Biden's White House has voted in favor of the 2022 bill. He has repeatedly pointed out that not a single Republican was a member of Congress.
Administration officials were also unclear about how quickly additional drug savings dollars would be implemented if passed by Congress.
With the 2024 presidential election just around the corner, these announcements are part of the president's strategy to address voters' concerns about the economy and his economic policies.more Americans recent polls Nearly 6 in 10 voters said they viewed the economy more positively under former President Donald Trump than under Biden, and nearly 6 in 10 said the current economy was bad.
President Biden has set out to lower health care costs as one way to address these economic concerns.
“I truly believe that the president's commitment to health is an important issue for all of us,” said Neera Tanden, White House domestic policy adviser.
The White House also expects the president Thursday night to tout his administration's efforts to address “staggering” high medical costs from out-of-network providers and the Affordable Care Act's health insurance expansion. said.
