President Biden highlighted health care provisions in the health, climate and tax package set for a Senate vote in a statement recognizing 57th the anniversaries of the creation of Medicare and Medicaid.
Biden said in declaration that the legislation, called the Inflation Reduction Act, would preserve the Affordable Care Act eligibility improvements that were included in the American Rescue Plan, which saved 13 million Americans an average of $800 a year in health insurance premiums, according to the statement. He said the act would also protect 3 million Americans from becoming uninsured.
Sen. Joe Manchin (DW.Va.) and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (DN.Y.) reach an agreement Wednesday on a bill that would allow Medicare to directly negotiate drug prices and cap out-of-pocket costs of prescription drugs at $2,000 a year. It will also invest $369 billion in climate programs over 10 years and $300 billion in deficit reduction.
Biden said allowing Medicare to negotiate would potentially lower costs for millions of senior citizens, and capping drug costs at $2,000 would save Medicare beneficiaries with cancer and other chronic diseases thousands of dollars a year.
“For decades, congressional Democrats have been fighting for this — and we’re willing to come together and do it,” he said.
Biden said he and congressional Democrats are fighting to strengthen Medicare and Medicaid, which provide health insurance to senior citizens and low-income Americans, respectively.
According to Biden, about 140 million Americans benefit from the programs.
President Lyndon Johnson created Medicare and Medicaid as part of the Social Security Amendments of 1965. Almost 20 million Americans registered in programs in their first three years, according to the National Archives.
