Inflation Reduction Act Targets Health Care Costs for Seniors

Signed into law by the Biden Administration on August 16, 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) seeks to curb inflation through various means, one being lowering the costs incurred by Medicare beneficiaries for their health care.

Expanding Medicare benefits, the IRA lowers prescription drug costs and health care costs for seniors by:

• Capping prescription drug costs at the pharmacy at $2,000 per year

• Capping the cost of insulin at $35 per month

• Increasing the number of free vaccines available to beneficiaries

• Lowering prescription drug prices by allowing Medicare to negotiate the price of high-cost drugs

• Lowering monthly premiums on the ACA marketplace