“President Biden and Senator Sanders Unite to Tackle Healthcare Costs”
President Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders convened at the White House on Wednesday to emphasize the administration’s endeavors to reduce healthcare costs for Americans.
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Bernie Sanders
While the event was official in nature, it coincided with Biden’s campaign focus on curbing corporate greed and alleviating financial burdens for American families as key elements of his 2024 reelection bid.
“You and I have been fighting this for 25 years,” Biden remarked to Sanders. “Finally, we beat Big Pharma, finally.”
Sanders, Biden’s former rival for the Democratic nomination in 2020, lent his support amidst growing discontent from the party’s progressive wing over Biden’s handling of the Israel-Hamas conflict. Reporters attempted to interject questions regarding Gaza and the Israeli strike that claimed the lives of World Central Kitchen aid workers, but Biden refrained from responding.
Sanders commenced his address on Wednesday by stating that Americans, irrespective of political affiliation, are collectively “sick and tired of paying, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs.”
“In spite of the incredible wealth and political influence of the pharmaceutical industry… in spite of all that, the Biden administration and Democrats in Congress are beginning to make some headway,” the independent senator asserted.
Biden and Sanders highlighted achievements such as the provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act, which cap insulin costs at $35 for Medicare patients and limit out-of-pocket spending on brand-name drugs for Medicare beneficiaries to $2,000 annually.
Additionally, they emphasized Medicare’s newfound ability to negotiate with pharmaceutical companies on the pricing of certain prescription medications—a first in its history.
“Not a single Republican in Congress—surprisingly, I must admit—not one of them voted for it,” Biden remarked regarding the Inflation Reduction Act. “Not one to grant us the authority to take on and defeat Big Pharma.”
He also criticized congressional Republicans and his “predecessor” for their stances on Social Security, the Affordable Care Act, the national deficit, abortion access, and more. Without mentioning Donald Trump by name, he denounced him for boasting about overturning Roe v. Wade.
“With a Democratic Congress, Kamala and I will reinstate Roe v. Wade as the law of the land,” he pledged. “I assure you.”
Another accomplishment highlighted by Biden and Sanders was the reduction in inhaler costs. Sanders, as chair of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pension, spearheaded an inquiry into the pricing of these widely used products. Subsequently, three of the four major companies—GSK, AstraZeneca, and Boehringer Ingelheim—capped out-of-pocket costs for their inhalers at $35.
“My impression is that these companies, along with many others in the pharmaceutical industry, are beginning to realize that the American people are fed up with being overcharged and paying exorbitant prices for the prescription drugs they need to survive or alleviate their suffering,” Sanders remarked.
Biden noted that while Americans were paying up to $600 for inhalers, the same product and medication were available in the United Kingdom for $49.
“It’s unacceptable, but we’re finally taking action,” he affirmed.
Nonetheless, both Biden and Sanders acknowledged the need for further efforts. They advocated for expanding Medicare’s price negotiations to include 50 drugs (the first 10 drugs subject to negotiations were revealed last year) and for capping out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs at $2,000 for all Americans.
“With Bernie’s assistance, we are demonstrating how healthcare should be a right, not a privilege, in America,” Biden concluded.
