What you need to know about Biden’s First 100 Days Address
“Healthcare should be a right, not a privilege in America.” Biden made his first address to the American people last night, although we can assume the world was watching. Below we break down three key takeaways as they relate to healthcare, Medicare, and health spending. Skipping the Coronavirus conversation, we focus on the pieces of legislation we can all look out for in the coming months.
As a caveat, these are issues Biden and his administration plan to address, there is no guarantee that these things will pass Congress. A little government 101, the bills can be composed and make their way from the House of Representatives with a ⅔ majority, to the Senate where the real debate takes place. The House of Representatives is predominantly Democrats whereas the Senate is a 50/50 split between the parties. Given the fervent polarization of our political system, passing the Senate will be the new gauntlet for legislation. Biden could of course pass legislation via Executive Order, but this would only last through the duration of his presidency, and could be overturned with a new president. That’s why it’s crucial that legislation passes the appropriate measures to be created into law.
1) Caregiver Benefits Through the American Jobs Plan
This would predominantly benefit women who are often the caregivers for children and older adults. Balancing their caregiving responsibilities with employment, women find themselves stretched so thin that they either reduce their working hours or drop out of the workforce all together. The pandemic’s circumstances resulted in an estimated 2 million women dropping out of the workforce. Women drop out of the workforce at a rate 4 times higher than their male counterparts.
The caregiver benefits will subsidize child care, child tax credit, and create more opportunities for community-based care options, freeing women from caregiving and allowing them to return/enter the workforce at new levels. The proposed American Families’ Plan would create 12-week paid, family and medical leave. Additionally Biden mentioned that over 800,000 families were waiting on medicare enrollment for their aging loved ones to receive home health care benefits, allowing their caregivers to return to work.
2) Health Research and Development
Biden called for the National Institute of Health to develop “advanced research projects” that would advance detection and treatment options for diseases like cancer and Alzheimers. This would build on the almost $9 million in funding provided to NIH for cancer research last year.
3) The ACO and Healthcare Costs
The American Rescue Plan, the first in the two major Federal Stimulus injections, reduced healthcare costs for those enrolling in the Affordable Care Act. Stating it’s significant positive impact on Americans, Biden voiced his intent to make it a permanent feature of the US healthcare system.
Biden acknowledged the approximate 3 times higher rate of prescription drugs in the United States compared to the rest of the world. Calling to increase Medicare’s autonomy to negotiate a reduction in drug prices, would not only improve cost saving for Medicare Beneficiaries, but for all Americans on prescription medications.
“Healthcare should be a right, not a privilege in America.” The statement speaks for itself, and was followed by intent to fund healthcare, increased coverage and the entirety of reforms.
Source:
NPR. (2021, April 29). President Biden's address to Congress, annotated. Retrieved April 29, 2021, from https://www.npr.org/2021/04/28/989120226/bidens-address-to-congress-annotated