President Biden linked arms with Sen. Bernard Sanders, a hero to the liberal left, on Wednesday to burnish his brand as Big Pharma’s chief nemesis and push for an extension of newly adopted drug savings to all Americans — not just seniors on Medicare.
Mr. Biden, eyeing a tough reelection campaign, is pushing for a broad cap on out-of-pocket drug payments and the cost of insulin, hoping to build on key parts of his signature 2022 legislation.
“You and I have been fighting this for 25 years,” Mr. Biden said to Mr. Sanders, a democratic socialist from Vermont, at a White House event. “Finally, we beat Big Pharma. I’m serious.”
Mr. Biden is also desperate to retain young voters who drove his victory in 2020. Being seen with Mr. Sanders could serve as a critical link to those voters because the senator is a major champion for ideas like “Medicare-for-all” that appeal to progressive youth.
“We are sick and tired of paying, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs,” Mr. Sanders said at the White House. “The Biden administration and Democrats in Congress are beginning to make some progress.”
Mr. Biden’s marquee drug-price legislation offered seniors on Medicare a $2,000 annual cap on prescription costs and a $35 limit on monthly insulin in the Inflation Reduction Act. But Democrats want to grant the benefits to all Americans.
The president also wants to let Medicare negotiate up to 50 drugs per year, an expansion of a signature program that will negotiate down the cost of at least 10 drugs starting in 2026 before expanding to 15 drugs and, incrementally, more drugs in successive years.
“I think we should be more aggressive,” Mr. Biden said.
Mr. Biden and Mr. Sanders tried to draw a contrast with former President Donald Trump and his GOP allies.
The Republican Study Committee, a major bloc of House Republicans, released a fiscal 2025 budget plan that would attack Obamacare and convert Medicare into a premium-support model.
Mr. Biden said he is pushing to extend supersized subsidies that made Obamacare more popular and drove record signups, yet expire at the end of 2025.
“I’m calling on Congress to make tax credits permanent,” Mr. Biden said. “All of this is a stark contrast to my predecessor and MAGA Republicans in Congress. They want to terminate the Affordable Care Act.”
High everyday costs from inflation are a major drag on Mr. Biden’s polling numbers and potential reelection prospects, despite rosier metrics in other parts of the economy.
Surveys show voters are sensitive to high grocery costs and other expenses, and Mr. Trump is tied with or leading Mr. Biden in many swing states.
Republicans say Mr. Biden does not have a positive record on health care and that Mr. Trump offered a better range of consumer choices while president.
In a statement Wednesday, the Republican National Committee faulted Mr. Biden’s border policies for the flow of deadly fentanyl from Mexico to U.S. communities and high health-care spending that flows to illegal immigrants.
“We need President Trump back in office to put American families first,” RNC Chairman Michael Whatley said.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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