August 16, 2022

Seniors Rejoice as President Biden Makes Lower Drug Prices for Older Americans the Law of the Land

Members of the Alliance for Retired Americans celebrated President Biden’s signing of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) into law on Tuesday following recent passage of the legislation by the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives.

The bill will help lower prescription drug prices for seniors by:

• Requiring Medicare to negotiate lower prices for some of the highest priced prescription drugs, using its enormous purchasing power on behalf of seniors and taxpayers;
• Capping out of pocket costs for insulin at $35 per month for Medicare beneficiaries;
• Making all recommended adult vaccines free for Medicare beneficiaries beginning in 2023;
• Prohibiting drug corporations from increasing the price it charges Medicare for a drug by more than the rate of inflation; and
• Capping out of pocket drug spending at $2,000 per year for Medicare Part D.

“This victory for older Americans is especially sweet because it shows seniors defeating the pharmaceutical industry,” said Robert Roach, Jr., President of the Alliance. “Fortunately the efforts of 4.4 million Alliance members and our allies overcame the efforts of the 1,600 lobbyists the pharmaceutical corporations employed in 2021.”

“This is a long time coming. Alliance members have been fighting to allow Medicare to negotiate lower prescription drug prices for two decades,” said Richard Fiesta, Executive Director of the Alliance. “Our members first took bus trips to Canada to obtain more affordable medications as far back as 2002.”

Five to seven million Medicare beneficiaries could see their prescription drug costs go down because of the provision allowing Medicare to negotiate prescription drug costs. 3.3 million Medicare beneficiaries with diabetes will benefit from a guarantee that their insulin costs are capped at $35 for a month’s supply.

“Congress after Congress and President after President have failed or been unable to rein in drug costs,” Fiesta added. “The pharmaceutical corporations spent $187 million on lobbying in 2022 alone, but seniors, Democrats in Congress and President Biden stood up to them and today we finally won.”

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Contact: David Blank, dblank@retiredamericans.org