Senate Republicans have blocked Democrats’ move to provide a $35 monthly cap on the price of insulin as part of the Inflation Reduction Act.
On Sunday, the Senate officially passed Democrat’s $750 billion health care, tax and climate bill in a tight 51-50 vote, with Vice President Kamala Harris breaking the tie.
The bill, named the Inflation Reduction Act, is the biggest investment the U.S. government has made in climate change ever in the country’s history. It seeks to make a “down payment on deficit reduction to fight inflation, invest in energy production and manufacturing, and reduce carbon emissions by roughly 40 percent by 2030,” according to a summary of the bill.
In addition, the bill would make changes to health policies, including giving Medicare the authority to negotiate the costs of certain prescription drugs. It would also raise taxes on big businesses and take on rising costs for health care, CBS News reports.
However, Dems couldn’t lock in all of what they were striving for through the bill. This past Saturday, the Senate discussed more than 30 amendments to the Inflation Reduction Act. One of which was putting a $35 cap on how much Americans pay for insulin a month, whether they have private insurance or Medicare. In a 57 – 43 vote, seven GOP senators voted alongside 50 Democrats to continue deciding the price limit on insulin. Sixty votes were needed.
