Vice President Kamala Harris’ health care platform builds on the Biden administration’s efforts to reduce prescription drug costs.
She is calling to expand the current $35 monthly cap on out-of-pocket costs for insulin and the upcoming $2,000 annual limit on out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs generally to all Americans, not just Medicare enrollees. These caps were put in place for those on Medicare in the Inflation Reduction Act. The $2,000 limit on Medicare Part D drug costs takes effect in January.
Harris’ plan would also accelerate the speed of Medicare’s drug price negotiations so that the costs of more medications come down faster. The Biden administration announced the results of the first-ever round of negotiations, which is expected to result in $6 billion in savings for Medicare and a $1.5 billion reduction in out-of-pocket costs for seniors when the lower prices take effect in 2026.
Meanwhile, Trump in November promised to replace the Affordable Care Act, known colloquially as Obamacare, in a series of posts on Truth Social. A Trump-backed effort to repeal and replace Obamacare failed in 2017 after three Republican senators joined with Democrats to vote against the bill.
Trump also vowed in a June 2023 campaign video to reinstate his previous executive order so that the US government would pay the same price for pharmaceuticals as other developed countries. Some of the former president’s pharmaceutical policies were overturned by Biden.
In August, Trump announced plans to make either the government or insurance companies pay for in vitro fertilization treatments. He did not specify how the treatments would be paid for. The former president also praised medical marijuana ahead of some states voting on the issue this fall.
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