USA: The Ambitious Climate Change and Drug Price Reduction Bill

After 18 months of negotiations, the Biden administration’s climate change and medicare reform bill has begun to be debated in the US Congress.

“This bill will fundamentally change the situation for American households and our economy,” promised the Democratic president of the United States, who came to power with big reform ambitions.

The ambitious plan — the result of numerous compromises with the conservative wing of his party — calls for $370 billion to meet the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and $64 billion for health.

Solar power

President Biden calls this investment, the highest in US history, “historic”. Because although the United States is hit every year by deadly floods and devastating wildfires, the climate crisis ranks very low on the list of top concerns for American households, far behind inflation and unemployment.

In order to ensure that this spending will receive the support of the American people, the Democrats decided to focus on economic incentives: part of the funds will be used to finance tax breaks for producers and consumers of wind, solar and nuclear energy.

Several billion dollars, in the form of tax credits, will also be offered to the most polluting industries to help them transition – a measure strongly criticized by the left wing of the party for failing to reach a more ambitious deal after months of negotiations.

It also provides for forest protection measures to make forests more resilient to the large wildfires that are ravaging the American West and whose proliferation has been largely attributed to global warming.

Cheaper drugs

The “Inflation Reduction Act,” as it’s called, also aims to address the exorbitant price of certain drugs, such as insulin, and thus partially eliminate the huge disparities in Americans’ access to care.

“The anguish of people who are unable to afford life-saving drugs will be significantly eased,” Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said.

This major reform will for the first time allow Medicare — the public health insurance system — to negotiate the prices of certain drugs directly with pharmaceutical companies and thereby ensure more competitive prices.

Many Democrats have denounced the prohibitive cost of some treatments, which can be up to 10 times more expensive in the US than in other advanced countries around the world.

However, there are others who do not share the need for government intervention, considering it a matter of individual responsibility and foresight.

Criticism from Republicans

The bill — which is said to resonate favorably with a large portion of the American public, according to several polls — has been sharply criticized by the Republican opposition, which accuses President Biden of adding fuel to the fire as inflation has soared. at record levels.

“Democrats have already looted American households once through inflation, and the solution they’re favoring now is to loot them a second time,” said Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell.

Along with these huge investments, the bill aims to reduce the public deficit by imposing a new minimum tax of 15% on all companies whose profits exceed one billion dollars. It even aspires not to allow giant companies to take advantage of “loopholes” to be taxed at a lower rate.

The bill should be brought up for a vote in the Senate early next week. It will then make its way to the House of Representatives, where Democrats have a narrow majority.

US President Joe Biden, who is desperate for a political breakthrough ahead of midterm elections in less than 100 days, is urging Congress to pass the bill without delay.

Source: AMPE