Opinion editor's note: Editorials represent the opinions of the Star Tribune Editorial Board, which operates independently from the newsroom.
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Minnesota's U.S. House representatives and their colleagues are expected to vote Friday on the sprawling Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). As they consider this historic bill and its consumer-friendly fixes for rising health care costs, here's important context:
In a fall 2021 poll, 83% of American adults surveyed by the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) said prescription drug prices are "unreasonable." Close to 30% reported that they hadn't taken their medications as directed in the past year due to cost.
In an era in which common ground is rare, there's clearly broad support for tackling this pocketbook issue. The IRA legislation, passed last week by Senate Democrats, has numerous fixes. Voting yes should be easy.
Its passage would offer price relief for seniors on Medicare struggling with medication costs. While much of the news coverage has focused on this, it's also important to note that the IRA also would assist younger people who are shouldering monthly premiums for private health insurance.
Medicare, of course, is the federally run health care program for seniors. It serves nearly 64 million Americans, with eligibility typically beginning at age 65. One of the IRA's most ambitious reforms would empower this program to wield its vast purchasing power to negotiate lower prices with the pharmaceutical industry on a limited number of drugs. The idea is to pass along savings to enrollees.
Implementation would begin in 2026 with 10 drugs, with the number incrementally increasing in following years. It's not clear yet which drugs would be selected. It'd be a cautious rollout, to be sure, but still a political win against the drug industry's lobbying might.
