News

Yesterday, Republicans in the Senate blocked a critical health care provision of the Inflation Reduction Act that would have capped insulin at $35 a month for millions of diabetics with private insurance. For years, Republican lawmakers stood by Big Pharma, fighting any reform that would lower drug prices for the American people. Insulin is a lifesaver for seven million Americans, but as drug companies hike its cost year after year, as many as one in four diabetics are forced to skip or ration their insulin — which can lead to death. 

The latest attempt to undermine the Inflation Reduction Act and keep insulin costs high shows Republicans will stop at nothing to protect drug company profits at the expense of patients. This vote disproportionately hurts people of color, rural Americans, and low-income families who have a harder time accessing quality, affordable coverage. Republicans’ decision to block this bill will undoubtedly put millions of lives at risk. 

Washington Post: Republicans Block Cap On Insulin Costs For Millions Of Patients. “Republican lawmakers on Sunday successfully stripped a $35 price cap on the cost of insulin for many patients from the ambitious legislative package Democrats are moving through Congress this weekend, invoking arcane Senate rules to jettison the measure…’Republicans have just gone on the record in favor of expensive insulin,’ said Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.). ‘After years of tough talk about taking on insulin makers, Republicans have once against wilted in the face of heat from Big Pharma.’” [Washington Post, 8/7/22]

CBS: Senate Republicans Block $35 Cap On Price Of Insulin From Democratic Bill. “Senate Republicans on Sunday blocked a $35 monthly cap on the cost of insulin in the private market from being included in Democrats’ economic tax and spending package, voting down an amendment to the measure during a marathon session leading up to what Democrats hope will be final passage of the bill.” [CBS, 8/8/22]

Rolling Stone: Insulin Will Remain Expensive For Many, Thanks To Republicans. “Democrats had hoped to limit patients’ out-of-pocket cost for insulin to $35 per month as part of legislation to address inflation and climate change. But when the Senate parliamentarian ruled that the provision’s cap on private insurance is not primarily connected to the federal budget, Republicans, led by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), seized their chance to object.” [Rolling Stone, 8/7/22]

Forbes: Inflation Reduction Act: Senate GOP Blocks Insulin Price Cap For Private Insurance As Democrats Aim To Pass Economic Bill. “A provision that would have capped insulin prices for private insurers at $35 a month was blocked by Republicans on Sunday…Republicans argued the insulin price cap did not fall under the rules for reconciliation bills…” [Forbes, 8/8/22]

Axios: Insulin Price Cap For Private Insurers Pulled From Reconciliation Bill. “Senate Republicans blocked the $35 cap on out-of-pocket spending on insulin for patients enrolled in private insurance in the reconciliation package…The drug costs eight times more in the U.S. than 32 other high-income nations, according to a 2020 study commissioned by the Health and Human Services Department.” [Axios, 8/7/22]

ABC: Republicans Strip $35 Insulin Price Cap From Democrats’ Bill — But Insist Senate Rules Are To Blame. “Nearly uniform Republican opposition in the Senate on Sunday stripped a proposed cap on insulin prices in private insurance from Democrats’ party-line climate, health and tax bill…The cap’s scrapping was quickly seized on by Democrats and stirred controversy beyond them, with critics of the GOP citing the sometimes startling cost of needed insulin for diabetics.” [ABC, 8/7/22]

CNN: Democrats Lose Effort To Cap Insulin At $35 For Most Americans Before Passage Of Senate Reconciliation Bill. “The party had pushed to include a measure in their climate and health care package that passed the chamber Sunday that would place a $35 cap on insulin for those on Medicare and with private coverage…but Republicans on Sunday raised a point of order that led to a vote that limited the $35 cap to Medicare beneficiaries only.” [CNN, 8/7/22]

NBC: Republicans Block Cap On Insulin Costs For Many Americans From Democratic Deal. “Republican senators on Sunday voted down a cap on the price of insulin in the private market, removing it from Democrats’ sweeping climate and economic package.” [NBC, 8/7/22]

Los Angeles Times: Senate Democrats Pass Sweeping Healthcare, Tax And Climate Bill. “Republicans succeeded in killing one provision that violated Senate budget rules. It would have capped the price of insulin at $35 a month in the private insurance market.” [Los Angeles Times, 8/7/22]

Yesterday, Senate Democrats passed The Inflation Reduction Act, which will lower costs and improve health care for millions of Americans. Along with combating inflation and making key investments in climate and energy, this historic legislation will extend enhanced premium tax credits for three years and drive down prescription drug prices by giving Medicare the power to negotiate, capping seniors’ out-of-pocket costs for drugs at $2,000 per year, limiting insulin costs, and stopping Big Pharma’s egregious price hikes. This bill will help lower costs for millions of working families and address the deep racial inequities in our health care system.

Despite unified Republican opposition and record spending from Big Pharma and other special interests, Senate Democrats got the job done. Coverage makes clear that the Inflation Reduction Act’s health care provisions will benefit millions of families for years to come. 

New York Times: Senate Passes The Climate, Health And Tax Bill, With All Republicans Opposed. “The Senate passed legislation on Sunday that would make the most significant federal investment in history to counter climate change and lower the cost of prescription drugs, as Democrats banded together to push through major pieces of President Biden’s domestic agenda over unified Republican opposition…It would achieve Democrats’ longstanding goal of slashing prescription drug costs by allowing Medicare for the first time to negotiate the prices of medicines directly and capping the amount that recipients pay out of pocket for drugs each year at $2,000. The measure also would extend larger premium subsidies for health coverage for low- and middle-income people under the Affordable Care Act for three years” [New York Times, 8/8/22]

Washington Post: Senate Approves Inflation Reduction Act, Clinching Long-Delayed Health And Climate Bill. “The bill also includes $64 billion to stave off health insurance premium increases for about 13 million Americans who buy coverage through state and federal exchanges under the Affordable Care Act. These beneficiaries currently receive discounted coverage under a coronavirus-era program set to expire this year, threatening them with premium increases into hundreds of dollars next month.” [Washington Post, 8/7/22]

Bloomberg: Senate Passes Democrats’ Landmark Tax, Climate, Drugs Bill. “Medicare would be allowed to negotiate drug prices, starting with 10 high-priced drugs by the middle of this decade and expanding from there. It would cap out-of-pocket drug costs for seniors enrolled in Part D at $2,000 per year. The Senate parliamentarian spared drugmakers any penalties for increasing prices in the commercial market. The savings to Medicare will be used to pay for three years of subsidized Obamacare premiums.” [Bloomberg, 8/7/22]

Axios: Biden’s BFD. “Joe Biden has defied expectations, earning a legacy as a president who got big things done with a deeply divided Congress…”It will join a list of hard-fought legislation shaping the U.S. economy, society and foreign policy for decades to come. [Axios, 8/8/22]

Wall Street Journal: Senate Passes Democrats’ Climate, Healthcare And Tax Bill. “The bill’s prescription drug plan would for the first time empower Medicare to negotiate the prices of a limited set of drugs selected from among those that account for the biggest share of government expenditures, long a goal for lawmakers. It would also cap out-of-pocket drug costs for Medicare beneficiaries at $2,000 a year beginning in 2025, and starting next year mandate free vaccines for Medicare enrollees. It would cap insulin costs for Medicare patients at $35 a month starting next year. Subsidies for purchasing health insurance through the ACA, which Democrats passed into law in 2021, would continue through 2025…” [Wall Street Journal, 8/7/22]

STAT: In A Massive Victory For Democrats, Medicare Is Poised To Negotiate Drug Prices. “The reform is a stunning defeat for the pharmaceutical industry, which has invested a staggering amount of money to get its way in Washington, and which launched a seven-figure campaign last month to try to stop this effort. Allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices has been the sector’s third rail for two decades.” [STAT, 8/7/22]

Associated Press: What’s In Democrats’ Big Bill? Climate, Health Care, Savings. “Launching a long-sought goal, the bill would allow the Medicare program to negotiate prescription drug prices with pharmaceutical companies, saving the federal government some $288 billion over the 10-year budget window. Those new revenues would be put back into lower costs for seniors on medications, including a $2,000 out-of-pocket cap for older adults…the bill would allow the assistance to keep going for three more years, lowering insurance premiums for people who are purchasing their own health care policies.” [Associated Press, 8/7/22]

CNN: Senate Passes Democrats’ Sweeping Health Care And Climate Bill. “The bill would empower Medicare to negotiate prices of certain costly medications administered in doctors’ offices or purchased at the pharmacy. The Health and Human Services secretary would negotiate the prices of 10 drugs in 2026, and another 15 drugs in 2027 and again in 2028. The number would rise to 20 drugs a year for 2029 and beyond…Democrats are also planning to extend the enhanced federal premium subsidies for Obamacare coverage through 2025, a year later than lawmakers recently discussed. That way, they wouldn’t expire just after the 2024 presidential election.” [CNN, 8/7/22]

NBC: Senate Passes Sweeping Climate, Health And Tax Package, Putting Democrats On Cusp Of Historic Win. “The legislation would empower Medicare to negotiate prices with drug companies for the first time, cutting prescription drug prices for people 65 and older. The savings would help pay for a three-year extension of Affordable Care Act subsidies, which would stave off an expected rise in insurance premiums that were set to go into effect in 2023.” [NBC, 8/7/22]

Huffington Post: Senate Democrats Pass Sweeping Climate And Health Care Bill. “The bill would also enact a change Democrats have sought for more than a decade ― to allow Medicare to negotiate with drug companies over the prices of prescription drugs. That kind of haggling was outlawed in the 2003 Part D prescription drug benefit bill passed by Republicans. A separate provision of the legislation would extend a temporary set of subsidies for the Affordable Care Act that reduce the price of insurance that people buy directly through HealthCare.gov, or through state-run insurance exchanges like Pennsylvania’s “Pennie” and Connect for Health Care Colorado. For some insurance buyers, the subsidies lead to savings of hundreds or even thousands of dollars a year.” [Huffington Post, 8/7/22]

USA Today: Senate OKs Sweeping Bill Lowering Drug Prices And Promoting Clean Energy, Setting Up Major Biden Win. “The bill would allow Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices – long opposed by the pharmaceutical industry – and extend Affordable Care Act subsidies three more years through 2025.” [USA Today, 8/7/22]

Los Angeles Times: Senate Democrats Pass Sweeping Healthcare, Tax And Climate Bill. “The drug-price plan is the centerpiece of the Democrats’ bill, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022…The enactment of the Medicare drug negotiation policy — which Democrats have been pushing for nearly two decades — would mark a significant accomplishment that is likely to be popular with voters who are eager to go after drugmakers. It amounts to the most substantial change in healthcare policy since the Affordable Care Act was passed in 2010.” [Los Angeles Times, 8/7/22]

Forbes: Health Insurers And 13M Enrollees Cheer Senate’s Extension Of Obamacare Credits. “The U.S. Senate’s passage of the Inflation Reduction Act Sunday extends subsidies for millions of Americans who buy individual coverage under the Affordable Care Act known as Obamacare.” [Forbes, 8/7/22]

Inflation Reduction Act Will Drive Down Health Care Premiums and Prescription Drug Costs for Millions

Washington, D.C. — Today, Senate Democrats passed The Inflation Reduction Act, which will lower costs and improve health care for millions of Americans. Along with combating inflation and making key investments in climate and energy, this historic legislation will extend enhanced premium tax credits for three years and drive down prescription drug prices by giving Medicare the power to negotiate, capping seniors’ out-of-pocket costs for drugs at $2,000 per year, limiting insulin costs, and stopping Big Pharma’s egregious price hikes. These policies will save millions of Americans thousands of dollars a year. In response, Protect Our Care Chair Leslie Dach issued the following statement:

“This bill will make a real difference in the lives of millions. It will lower health care costs by thousands of dollars a year. Today’s vote is a victory for people who work hard everyday but can’t afford the drugs they need to stay alive, or can’t afford to pay for health insurance and can’t access lifesaving care. 

“We are one step closer to ensuring millions of families can afford the health care they need. By voting to lower health care premiums and prescription drug costs, Democrats have secured the greatest health care achievement since the Affordable Care Act, overcoming unified Republican opposition and a decades-long lobbying campaign from Big Pharma and special interests. This bill will deliver long-overdue relief to millions and make health care more accessible, equitable, and affordable for years to come.” 

Republicans Put Millions of Lives in Jeopardy By Voting Against Insulin Cost Cap

Washington, DC — Today, Republicans in the Senate blocked a critical health care provision of the Inflation Reduction Act. The amendment would have capped insulin at $35 a month for millions of diabetics with private insurance. In response, Protect Our Care Chair Leslie Dach issued the following statement: 

“The Republican vote today will cost lives. Far too many diabetics in the U.S. are forced to ration or skip doses because of the outrageous price of insulin. Millions more have to choose between paying for food or rent because they cannot afford the drug they need to stay alive.  Make no mistake today Republicans chose big drug company greed over the needs of the American people.”

Congress is closer than it has ever been to passing historic legislation that will drive down health care costs and level the playing field for working families. A core piece of this legislation is lowering prescription drug prices. As it stands, Americans pay three times more for prescription drugs than people in other countries, forcing millions to choose between affording their medications and paying for essentials like food or rent. With this legislation, Medicare will finally have the power to negotiate for lower drug prices and all Americans will be protected against outrageous and arbitrary price increases, but Big Pharma is pulling out all the stops to try to protect their sky-high profits and block the bill’s passage. With the help of their Republican allies, drug companies have been relentless in their efforts to spread lies about the Democrats’ plan to lower drug prices for families. Here’s what they’re doing now: 

1. Trying to Keep People With Commercial Insurance From Paying Less for Their Drugs: The pharmaceutical industry has long viewed the Senate parliamentarian as their last hope to kill drug pricing reform as they desperately lobby to remove the drug provisions in the bill. Republican lobbyists are pushing for the parliamentarian to strike key provisions allowing Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices, repealing the Trump administration’s drug rebate rule, and forcing drug makers who raise prices faster than inflation to issue rebates. 
2. Threatening Members Of Congress Who Stand Up For Lower Drug Prices:  PhRMA is openly threatening members of Congress who vote for lower drug prices with political retaliation. PhRMA and its 31 board members sent a letter to every member of Congress yesterday afternoon, urging them to vote against the package, and PhrMA head Steve Ubl has plainly stated that, “Those members who vote for this bill will not get a free pass. We’ll do whatever we can to hold them accountable.” Ubl has indicated that the drug lobby will use its massive war chest to attack anyone who votes for lower drug prices, warning that “Few associations have all the tools of modern political advocacy at their disposal in the way that PhRMA does.”
3. Threatening Patients With Higher Prices And Supply Shortages: Not content just to threaten politicians who stand up for lower prices, the pharmaceutical industry is also threatening patients with higher prices and supply limitations if the Inflation Reduction Act passes. The head of PhRMA claims that one of the group’s member companies will cancel 15 drugs already in the development pipeline if the bill becomes law, and in a scare-mongering briefing last week drug executives said that if IRA passes, there will be reduced supply of lifesaving medicines. And the Congressional Budget Office predicts that manufacturers will respond to passage of this vital legislation by cranking up the launch prices of new drugs to preserve their massive profits.
4. Continuing Their Spending Spree on False Advertising:  According to OpenSecrets, the pharmaceutical industry has spent $101 million lobbying on behalf of 483 clients in 2022, fighting Democratic efforts to rein in prescription drug costs. That is double the amount of spending as the next largest industry. And in the past few weeks, their spending has gotten even more frantic. Research by Patients for Affordable Drugs Now found that PhRMA and its allies have spent at least $18.6 million on television and digital ads since July 1, including $1 million in spending on new television ads just since the Inflation Reduction Act was announced on July 27. Many of these pharma-backed ads have been fact checked as false or misleading. 

Listen to the Call Here.

Washington, DC — Today, Finance Committee Chairman Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Michael Bennet (D-CO), and Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA) joined patient advocates and Protect Our Care to call on Congress to move swiftly to pass the Inflation Reduction Act. The historic legislation includes critical measures to drive down health care premiums and prescription drug costs for millions of Americans. 

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 extends the enhanced premium tax credits for ACA plans and gives Medicare the power to negotiate prescription drug prices, caps seniors’ out-of-pocket costs for drugs at $2,000 per year, and stops Big Pharma’s egregious annual price hikes. The bill also limits insulin costs at $35 per month for millions of diabetics who depend on it. These measures will help lower costs for millions of working families and address the deep racial inequities in our health care system. 

“The Senate is on the cusp of a once-in-a-generation opportunity to lower drug costs for seniors and Medicare, and keep health insurance premiums low for families,” said Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR). “Medicare negotiation, limits on Big Pharma’s price gouging, and an out-of-pocket cap for seniors are going to mark a seismic shift in the relationship between Big Pharma and Medicare. I’m also thrilled that the bill includes several years of enhanced tax credits for middle-class health care. It’s time to pass these important policies to keep costs down for Americans.” 

“We’re standing with the American people to lower prices so they can afford their medicines, and the people are going to win this week,” said Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI). “There’s not one industry that has been price gouging for longer and deeper than the pharmaceutical industry. Americans pay the highest prices in the world for prescriptions – three to four times more than people in other countries. We are giving hundreds of billions of dollars to these same companies in taxpayer money for research and development, yet one out of four Americans can’t afford the medicine they need. This is just plain wrong. It’s time to put people over profits.”

“Right now, we have an economy that charges families more for health care than any other industrialized nation,” said Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO). “An economy that forces seniors to cut their pills in half, skip their prescriptions, or choose between buying groceries and the medication they need. That’s outrageous. We have to do everything we can to pass the Inflation Reduction Act to drive down health care costs and lower the price of prescription drugs.”

“Hardworking Georgians are struggling with rising costs, and the Inflation Reduction Act will make real change in their lives,” said U.S. Senator Reverend Warnock (D-GA). “From saving seniors money by allowing Medicare to directly negotiate drug costs, to expanding critical ACA subsidies so health care coverage stays affordable, to lowering insulin costs and limiting how much seniors have to pay for their prescriptions, this legislation will have a lasting impact on people in my state. I’m going to keep working to get this bill passed as soon as possible.”

“As an Atlanta business owner with several autoimmune diseases, I rely heavily on the ACA for health care insurance. Before the pandemic, my brother and I owned five businesses. Now, we’re down to one. I’m working to rebuild my businesses and income, so extending the tax credits are an extreme lifesaver for me,” said Himali Patel, a small business owner from Georgia. “Each month, I’m faced with the difficult decision of choosing to pay thousands for my medications that seem to forever skyrocket or my mortgage and groceries. So, I’m thankful Democrats are fighting to make quality affordable health care and prescription drugs for every American a reality.” 

“I have been a resident of Colorado for almost 40 years. And even longer than that, I’ve been living with type one diabetes now for 50 years. I am required to take insulin injections every single day to stay alive and to stay healthy,” said Gail deVore, a small business owner from Colorado. “As a type one diabetic, I can tell you firsthand that my biggest day to day anxiety is not kidney disease or other complications from diabetes, it’s simply the ability to access and afford my insulin. It’s crucial that our leaders in Congress like you are standing up for people like me, and ensuring that people can afford the medication we rely on to stay alive and to stay healthy.”

“For years, lawmakers have tried and failed to rein in drug costs and lower the cost of health care– but now President Biden and Democrats are getting the job done,” said Protect Our Care Chair Leslie Dach. “This achievement is monumental and long-overdue, meeting the needs of Americans from all walks of life. Despite unified Republican opposition and a $100 million lobbying campaign from Big Pharma, Democrats are charging ahead to get this historic legislation over the finish line.” 

***MEDIA ADVISORY FOR THURSDAY, AUGUST 4 AT 2:00 PM ET***

Senators Tammy Baldwin, Michael Bennet, Bob Casey, Chris Coons, Amy Klobuchar, Ed Markey, Chris Murphy, Alex Padilla, Brian Schatz, Tina Smith, Debbie Stabenow, Chris Van Hollen, and Ron Wyden

Washington, D.C. – Today, August 4 at 2:00 p.m. EST at the Senate Swamp and streamed live online, Senators Tammy Baldwin, Michael Bennet, Bob Casey, Chris Coons, Amy Klobuchar, Ed Markey, Chris Murphy, Alex Padilla, Brian Schatz, Tina Smith, Debbie Stabenow, Chris Van Hollen, and Ron Wyden will hold a press conference with American Federation of Teachers (AFT), Americans for Tax Fairness, Building Back Together, Climate Action Campaign, Center for American Progress, Climate Power, EDF Action, Hispanic Federation, League of Conservation Voters, National Education Association (NEA), Patients for Affordable Drugs Now, Protect Our Care, and Sierra Club, to celebrate the historic, cost-saving climate and health care provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act and urge Congress to swiftly pass the bill and get it to President Biden’s desk. 

The Inflation Reduction Act will deliver important relief to communities facing rising health care costs, high inflation, and suffering from climate-fueled extreme weather events. Critically, the Inflation Reduction Act will be the strongest federal climate legislation in U.S. history and will put the country on track to reduce emissions by roughly 40% by 2030. Additionally, this bill is the most consequential health care legislation since the Affordable Care Act — it will lower health care premiums for millions of Americans and includes historic reforms to lower prescription drug prices including allowing Medicare to negotiate for the very first time. These critical investments are fully paid for by curbing price gouging and tax evasion and by making billion-dollar corporations pay a fairer share of taxes, while protecting families making under $400,000 a year. The Senate and House must pass the bill as soon as possible.

WHAT: ‘Pass the Inflation Reduction Act’ Press Conference 

WHO:
Sen. Tammy Baldwin
Sen. Michael Bennet
Sen. Tom Carper
Sen. Bob Casey
Sen. Chris Coons
Sen. Amy Klobuchar
Sen. Ed Markey
Sen. Chris Murphy
Sen. Alex Padilla
Sen. Brian Schatz
Sen. Tina Smith
Sen. Debbie Stabenow
Sen. Chris Van Hollen
Sen. Ron Wyden
Patrick Gaspard, Center for American Progress
Leslie Dach, Protect Our Care
Tiernan Sittenfeld, League of Conservation Voters (LCV)
Randi Weingarten, American Federation of Teachers (AFT)

WHEN: Thursday, August 4 at 2:00 p.m. EST

WHERE: Capitol Hill – Senate Swamp
Located on the grass across the drive from the east Senate steps.

Event will also be streamed live online here.

RSVP: Email [email protected]