Tomorrow, President Biden will deliver his State of the Union address, which will underscore the contrast between his administration’s success in driving down health care costs and Republicans’ plans to take health care away from the American people. The Biden administration’s long list of accomplishments includes: expanding affordable coverage, lowering prescription drug costs, strengthening Medicaid for moms and kids, and reducing inequities in care. This year, a record 21.3 million people signed up for coverage under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplaces, seniors are saving on insulin and vaccine costs, and Medicare is negotiating lower prices for some of the costliest drugs on the market.
Last year, the GOP laid bare their plans for American health care: they are going to fight tooth and nail to raise costs even higher, deny coverage to millions of people, and slash funding for critical programs. In 2023 alone, Republicans tried to repeal the Inflation Reduction Act’s measures that make prescription drugs more affordable for seniors, impose burdensome Medicaid paperwork requirements designed to throw people off of coverage, and weaken protections for 135 million people with pre-existing conditions. Donald Trump has also reignited calls to repeal the ACA entirely, giving new life to Republicans’ longtime war on health care.
Key points of the GOP health care plan include:
- Repealing the ACA
- Repealing the Inflation Reduction Act
- Hiking drug costs for seniors
- Slashing Medicare and Medicaid funding
- Putting drug and insurance companies back in charge
If Republicans are successful in enacting their health care plan, 46 million Americans across the country risk losing coverage, 15 million will see higher premiums, and 65 million people on Medicare will have to pay increased drug costs for lifesaving medications.
Read more here: The Endless War: The MAGA Republican War on American Health Care