16 Aug Nevadans Celebrate First Anniversary of Historic Reforms to Lower Drug Prices, Lower Energy Costs and Make Tax System More Fair
Inflation Reduction Act is already saving millions of Americans money, even as drug corporations and their allies in Congress try to repeal it
Las Vegas, Nev. — To commemorate the first anniversary of the enactment of the historic Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, Shelbie Swartz, Interim Executive Director of Battle Born Progress, issued the following statement:
“The Inflation Reduction Act is the biggest progress we’ve made on healthcare costs and on addressing the negative impacts of climate change in our lifetimes. The tax reforms that will enable the IRS to finally collect taxes from wealthy tax cheats that have avoided paying their fair share for decades are also a huge victory for average Americans who are stuck in a two-tier tax system where the rich and corporations get unfair breaks and loopholes that help them get richer at our expense.
“Thanks to the new law, 5 to 7 million seniors and people with disabilities in Medicare will see lower negotiated prices on medicines, hundreds of thousands of Medicare enrollees will save money on out-of-pocket costs, and drug corporations will have to pay a fee back to Medicare for raising their prices faster than inflation. Around 22,000 Nevada Medicare enrollees will save money on insulin thanks to the new law’s $ 35-a-month insulin cap. These are long overdue reforms that save patients and taxpayers money in Medicare.
“But the law doesn’t stop there: it also lowers healthcare costs for people with private insurance by increasing premium tax credits in the Affordable Care Act so that more people can get covered. On average, Nevadans with marketplace coverage will save hundreds of dollars a year thanks to the IRA, including 19,000 small business owners. About 21,000 Nevadans will gain coverage thanks to increased affordability.
“The climate change provisions in the law will both save families money and help start a transition to cleaner energy that ultimately will help save lives given the tremendous negative impact of climate change on health and economic security. As the fires in Maui, record hot summer weather all over, rising prices on food, and other phenomena show–climate change has an increasing impact on all of us. The IRA provides common-sense reforms to start mitigating these impacts.
“There’s a lot to celebrate as we implement the new law and a lot to worry about as drug corporations, the Chamber of Commerce and some of their allies in Congress work to overturn the law before it even goes into effect. Average Americans will have to work hard to push back on lawsuits and new bills in Congress to repeal the law, stop implementation and chip away at this progress so that we can finally get the lower costs and fair prices that we need to take care of our families.”
SPOKESPEOPLE ARE AVAILABLE FOR COMMENT IN ENGLISH AND SPANISH
###
About Battle Born Progress: Battle Born Progress, through strategic communication efforts, empowers, engages and mobilizes Nevada voters to build a state where everyone has a fair opportunity to succeed. We support, engage, and mobilize the progressive community through bold leadership, strategic communications, accountability, and education. We are on the cutting edge of new media and are the go-to source for progressive issues and advocacy for traditional media. Learn more at https://battlebornprogress.org/.