Americans Need Relief From High Out-of-Pocket Costs

When it comes to health care, the single biggest issue facing Americans is out-of-pocket costs. High deductibles, rising out-of-pocket costs, and unpaid medical bills are plaguing American health care consumers – with 80% of voters feeling that these costs only continue to increase each year.

Right now, Congress has an opportunity to rein in these costs for Americans as they debate the reconciliation bill – also known as the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. With some adjustments, this bill has the potential to generate the significant reductions in out-of-pocket health care costs Americans desperately need.

To give millions of Americans real relief, Congress should cap insurance deductibles, prescription drug co-pays, and other out-of-pocket maximums at a level low enough that people don’t need to skip care or be forced into medical debt.

Medical debt is rampant – exacerbating hardships on people with cancer and other chronic illnesses like diabetes – and millions of people are skipping care because of unpredictable costs. Caps on insurance copays on what people pay for their prescriptions at the pharmacy counter, which are largely absent from the bill, would lower out-of-pocket costs and help countless Americans. This is particularly important to help those living with chronic conditions afford the medications they need to survive. For example, there are more than 37 million Americans living with diabetes. A $35 insulin cap alone is guaranteed to help each one when they ultimately become Medicare beneficiaries.

Congress owes health care consumers relief through the reconciliation bill by putting more money back into their pockets.

Please take a moment to send a letter to your Senators and Representatives urging them to fight for provisions that do more to reduce out-of-pocket costs for Americans. Let’s ensure savings from drug pricing policies in the reconciliation package are reinvested in ways that reduce out-of-pocket spending for the American people so they can keep more money in their wallets.