FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 26, 2024
New video features Salisbury resident who will save $30,000 a year on Parkinson’s prescriptions thanks to the IRA
In a video released today, Maryland and national health care groups call on the next president and the new Congress to preserve the Inflation Reduction Act’s landmark health benefits that are bringing down the cost of medications and making health insurance more affordable for millions.
The Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law almost two years ago by President Biden, is generating major benefits for millions of Americans. It caps the cost of insulin at $35 per month for Medicare enrollees, saves 15 million Americans an average of $800 a year on their health insurance premiums, authorizes Medicare to negotiate with prescription drug corporations to reduce costs and, beginning January 1, 2025, caps out-of-pocket costs on drugs to $2,000 a year for Medicare enrollees.
The new video features the story of Larry Zarzecki, a Salisbury resident and retired police officer, who spends roughly $2,700 a month on the medicines he needs to treat his Parkinson’s Disease. As a Medicare beneficiary, the IRA will cap his out-of-pocket drug costs at $2,000 a year as of January 1, 2025, creating major savings for him and his family. In the video, he calls on the new president and Congress to stand with him and others across America who benefit from the IRA. Mr. Zarzecki sent a letter today to Vice President Kamala Harris and Donald Trump asking them to commit to protecting these lifesaving provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act.
“Saving $30,000 a year on my medicines will restore a quality of life that I have not been able to experience since my diagnosis. The Inflation Reduction Act will benefit millions of people like me in Maryland and across the country, and it’s critical we keep its health provisions in law,” Mr. Zarzecki said. “So many people struggle to pay for the drugs they need to lead healthy lives, and I urge the next president and Congress to stand with them and keep the Inflation reduction Act in law. Drugs don’t work if people can’t afford them.”
Along with the video, the Committee to Protect Health Care, a national organization that brings together health professionals to advocate for a stronger health care system, has sent a letter to all candidates for Congress nationally, urging them to protect the IRA’s health benefits.
“I see how many of my patients have trouble paying for the prescriptions they need or getting affordable health insurance. That’s why the Inflation Reduction Act’s health benefits are so crucial,” said Dr. Ealena S. Callender, a Montgomery County OB/GYN and a member of the Committee to Protect Health Care who is also featured in the video. “If we go backwards by letting the Inflation Reduction Act’s health insurance assistant program expire in 2025, so many people across the country will pay the price, and many will simply go without the care or medications they need. That is unacceptable.”
Families USA Action, a national voice for health care consumers, is also urging Congress to keep IRA health benefits in place. “Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act, millions of older adults and people with disabilities that rely on Medicare finally have some relief from high drug costs. Every month paying their premiums and at the pharmacy, families struggle with the irrationally inflated price of prescription drugs,” said Families USA Action Executive Director Anthony Wright. “Poll after poll shows broad demand from voters across ideology or identity to take on drug costs, and support for the provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act. This election will determine if Medicare gets to negotiate on more drugs to get more savings for more people, or if Big Pharma gets to roll back this initial progress on affording prescription drug prices.”
The Health Care for All Coalition surveyed all Maryland Congressional candidates about their support for the IRA and today thanked those who said they would preserve the IRA’s health benefits. Those candidates who pledged to protect the IRA’s health benefits are:
- U.S. Senate candidates Angela Alsobrooks and Larry Hogan
- House of Representatives candidates: Blane H. Miller III (1st District); John Olszewski Jr. (2nd District); Sarah Elfreth (3rd District); Glenn Ivey (4th District); Steny Hoyer (5th District); April McClain-Delaney (6th District); Kweisi Mfume (7th District); and Jamie Raskin (8th District)
“The IRA is producing enormous savings for tens of millions of Americans, including many in Maryland like Larry Zarzecki, by reducing their costs for lifesaving drugs or enrolling in health insurance,” said Vincent DeMarco, president of the Maryland Citizens’ Health Initiative. “We are grateful to the candidates for Senate and House of Representatives seats in Maryland who have committed to protect the IRA. We will continue to spread the word about which candidates are standing with the people to preserve these critical health measures.”
A 2022 analysis estimated that more than 142,000 Maryland consumers would be hurt by ending the IRA’s financial support for health insurance and would see their premiums increase by 47% on average, or more than $80 per month. More than a million Marylanders are Medicare-eligible, and many will see steep reductions in their out-of-pocket drug costs, thanks to the IRA.
