FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 8, 2022 

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WIN FOR GEORGIA: Warnock Leads Passage of Inflation Reduction Act, Including His Proposals To Lower Prescription Drug Costs

Reverend Warnock Successfully Fought To Include His Proposals To Cap Insulin Costs At $35 Per Month For Georgians On Medicare, Cap The Annual Cost Of Prescription Drugs For Seniors At $2,000 A Year

Meanwhile, Herschel Walker Opposes Legislation That Will Lower Costs For Georgians

Atlanta, GA – Yesterday, after Reverend Warnock’s months-long fight to lower the cost of prescription drugs in the U.S. Senate, Warnock’s proposals to lower prescription drug costs for seniors on Medicare and cap the cost of insulin at $35 per month for Georgians on Medicare passed as part of the Inflation Reduction Act. The bill also includes health care savings for Georgians and finally gives  Medicare the ability to negotiate drug prices on behalf of Georgia seniors. The legislation will lower costs, bring good-paying jobs to Georgia, all while reducing the federal deficit. 

Meanwhile, Herschel Walker opposes this critical legislation that would lower health care and prescription drug costs for Georgians.

Here’s what Georgians have seen as Reverend Warnock fought to move this legislation forward: 

Atlanta Journal Constitution: Senate approves spending bill, with votes from Warnock and Ossoff

• With the tie-breaking vote of Vice President Kamala Harris, Democrats on Sunday delivered a major victory for President Joe Biden’s agenda, as the U.S. Senate approved a health care, tax, and climate change package that had been stalled for over a year. The vote was 51-50.

• “I’m thrilled we were finally able to pass this historic, once-in-a-generation investment in our country’s future,” said Georgia U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock.

• The bill allows Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices with drug makers, requires big corporations to pay a minimum 15% tax on profits, extends subsidies under the Affordable Care Act for another two years, and includes a series of tax incentives to help with climate change.

• The bill will cap monthly insulin copays for Medicare beneficiaries at $35 per month, an achievement Warnock celebrated after the Senate vote. “This bill will strengthen health care access and lower health care costs for people across Georgia,” he said in a tweet.

Atlanta Voice: Senate Democrats pass key budget plan; victories for Biden, Ossoff and Warnock

• Senators Jon Ossoff and Reverend Raphael Warnock secured major victories as well. The two major pieces of legislation that Senator Reverend Warnock introduced are included in The Inflation Reduction Act are bills to cap insulin costs at $35 a month for patients on Medicare, and his plan to cap the cost of prescription drugs for seniors at $2,000 a year. 

• “I’m thrilled we were finally able to pass this historic, once-in-a-generation investment in our country’s future that will lower costs for Georgians, create clean energy jobs and reduce the deficit all at the same time,” said Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock. “I’m especially proud that the legislation includes two provisions I introduced to cap insulin costs for Medicare patients at $35 a month, and to limit the cost of prescription drugs for seniors. This bill will strengthen health care access and lower health care costs for people across Georgia.”

• The legislation also permits Medicare to negotiate drug prices, which, if this portion of the bill becomes federal law, would be the largest expansion of the Affordable Care Act, which is colloquially known as Obamacare.

• “I’m not in love with politics, I’m in love with change—and this legislation will make real change in people’s lives. From saving seniors money by allowing Medicare to directly negotiate drug prices, to expanding vital health care subsidies, to greening the economy, this legislation will make a lasting impact on Georgians’ lives,” continued Senator Warnock.

BACKGROUND ON THE INFLATION REDUCTION ACT

The Inflation Reduction Act includes key measures Warnock has led and sponsored, including: 

• Reverend Warnock’s proposal to cap the cost of insulin at $35 for patients on Medicare, which would directly benefit more than 50,000 Georgians.

• Reverend Warnock introduced his Affordable Insulin Now Act in February, and has led a months-long fight ever since to lower insulin costs.

• Reverend Warnock’s proposal to cap the cost of prescription drugs at $2,000 per year for seniors.

• Senator Warnock introduced his Capping Drug Costs for Seniors Act in April, and in July, led a field hearing for the Senate Aging Committee in Fayetteville, Georgia about the urgent importance of passing the legislation.

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