One of the biggest shames of the American system is our healthcare costs. I’m sure I don’t have to tell all of you about that.
Joe Biden is taking this seriously and ACTING to reduce health care costs.
How?
Well, here are just eight of the things he’s done lately:
- On December 7, 2023, President Biden announced new actions to lower health care and prescription drug costs by addressing consolidation in the health care market, which drives higher costs.
- On December 6, 2023, the Department of Health and Human Services, or HHS, announced
that more than 7 million Americans had signed up for coverage through an Affordable Care Act (ACA) plan since the start of 2024 open enrollment period. These folks will continue to see lower health care premiums in 2024 thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act. Last year, over
16 million people enrolled in ACA plans—a 50% increase since President Biden took office.
This means some states have near-universal coverage!
- On November 16, 2023, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released a report highlighting the challenges thousands of American families face when debt collectors dun them for medical bills that may be incorrect or not even owed at all. CFPB has taken a range of actions to help, from enforcement and education for debt collectors, to support to states tackling the problem, to outreach and resources for consumers.
- On September 21, 2023, Vice President Harris and CFPB Director Chopra announced that CFPB will propose a rule to remove medical bills from credit reports. This new rule will change lives.
- On August 29, 2023, Medicare announced the first 10 drugs that had been selected for drug price negotiation. This is huge. These are drugs that bankrupted people, and now they’ll be affordable.
- On July 7, 2023, President Biden announced that CFPB, HHS, and the Department of Treasury sent out a Request for Information to address the growing number of healthcare providers offering medical credit cards and installment loans. These offerings may drive patients deep into debt; providers often have no incentive to tell patients about cheaper alternatives. The three agencies are currently evaluating comments, and further action will be taken soon.
- On July 7, 2023, President Biden announced that HHS, Treasury, and the Department of Labor have proposed a new rule to crack down on junk medical insurance. Also, carrying out the No Surprises Act, they’ve issued guidance to put more curbs on surprise medical billing. This action will greatly reduce the “extra” charges that can destroy families.
- On February 14, 2023, the White House announced that the Small Business Administration will reduce the role of medical debt in their main guaranteed loan program (7a) by discouraging lenders from taking medical debt into account. The agency will also invest in new technology for its Lender Match program to help borrowers find lenders that don’t consider medical debt.
This is how Biden gets things done — with the knowledge that when you have a Congress that won’t act, you can still bring about change if you carefully implement well-thought-out plans. Is it sexy and attention-grabbing? No. Does it make our lives better? Yes.
Is there still more work to be done? 100%! Lots more. But Biden did more than many people guessed could be done. He deserves a lot of credit. AND he deserves to be re-elected.
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This is an entry in my ongoing series Boosting Biden.
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