[ad_1]
By ALAN FRAM and RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR Associated Press
WASHINGTON – A House committee on Wednesday dealt a disturbing but provisional blow to President Joe Biden’s massive social and environmental infrastructure package, derailing a money-saving plan to let Medicare negotiate the price it pays for prescription drugs.
U.S. Representative Kurt Schrader from Oregon cast one of the leading Democratic votes against the drug pricing plan.
The vote by the House Energy and Trade Committee to drop his proposed 10-year, $ 3.5 trillion spending plan, signed by Biden, was not necessarily fatal. The House’s separate Ways and Means Committee kept it alive by approving almost identical language on drug prices.
Even so, a committee’s rejection of the provision underscores the influence moderates seek to limit new spending – or any small group of Democrats – have as Biden and party leaders attempt to push through the whole package. through the tightly divided Congress.
Faced with unanimous Republican opposition, Democrats can only lose three votes in the House and none in the Senate at 50-50 to send the full measure to Biden. This is a precarious margin for what will be a huge bill mixed with many politically sensitive initiatives on spending and taxes.
The pharmaceutical drug committee votes came as Biden held face-to-face meetings with two moderate Democratic senators who said the size of the $ 3.5 trillion proposal was too large. Separate sessions with the Senses. Arizona’s Kyrsten Sinema and West Virginia’s Joe Manchin pointed to stepped-up White House efforts to avoid Democratic defections.
The Energy and Trade vote on drug pricing language was 29-29, with three moderate Democrats joining Republicans in opposing it: Representatives Scott Peters of California, Kathleen Rice of New York and Schrader of the ‘Oregon. Tied votes in Congress are generally insufficient to keep the legislation in place.
Schrader, who inherited a fortune from his grandfather who was a senior executive at pharmaceutical giant Pfizer, accepted large donations from big pharma during his seven terms in Congress.
Henry Connelly, spokesperson for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., Said cutting drug costs “will remain the cornerstone” of party pressure for the comprehensive bill, the priority National Biden.
Democrats are counting on the drug pricing provisions to pay for a small but significant portion of their $ 3.5 trillion plan to strengthen the safety net, tackle climate change and fund other programs. Proponents say he could save $ 600 billion over the next decade.
The legislation would allow Medicare to negotiate with drug companies, using the lower prices paid in other economically advanced countries as a benchmark. The savings would be used to expand Medicare coverage by adding dental, vision and hearing benefits.
The energy and trade vote showed “real concerns about President Pelosi’s extreme drug pricing plan,” Debra DeShong, senior spokesperson for Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, said in a statement. The industry says the drug negotiation plan would lead to price controls that would reduce investment in finding promising new cures and treatments.
Senate Budget Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., One of the main champions of the drug pricing effort, said there was “no excuse” for Democrats to bend over backwards. to “the extremely greedy and powerful pharmaceutical industry”. “The American people will not accept surrender,” he added.
Biden’s talks with Sinema and Manchin came as centrist unrest over the overall cost of the bill has prompted party leaders to delicately seek out a number moderate and progressive lawmakers can approve.
“Today’s meeting has been productive and Kyrsten continues to work in good faith with his colleagues and President Biden as this legislation evolves,” said Sinema spokesperson John Labombard. His assessment was a positive sign in a process that saw progressives and moderates in the party defending conflicting claims.
Biden and Democratic leaders have endorsed the $ 3.5 trillion figure, but in recent days, they have been more cautious about its ultimate size. The huge package faces unanimous opposition from Republicans, who say its proposals are unnecessary and would hurt the economy.
The measure would push utilities to produce cleaner energy, expand medicare coverage, create new child care and family leave programs, and provide a free preschool and community college.
There would be a series of tax breaks to help families meet the costs of health care and child rearing. Much of it would be paid by raising taxes on the rich and corporate.
By Wednesday evening, the 13 House committees with elements of the comprehensive social and environmental bill had completed their work, meeting a target set by Democratic leaders.
Democratic leaders would like to send full legislation to Biden for signing in the coming weeks, but many believe that resolving the political and political complications the party faces will take much longer. White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters on Wednesday they expected Congress to propose the legislation ahead of an international climate conference in November.
Manchin has been a particularly vocal critic of the bill as a whole. He called for a “pause” on the legislation and said on Sunday he could not support $ 3.5 trillion, suggesting instead a turnover of between $ 1,000 billion and $ 1.5 trillion.
Progressives, who initially demanded a $ 6 trillion plan, have said it would be unacceptable to narrow the package down to Manchin’s lineup.
The House Ways and Means Committee approved its part of the Comprehensive Bill 24-19, with moderate Florida Rep. Stephanie Murphy being the only Democrat to vote no. She cited “spending and tax provisions that make me sober,” but expressed optimism about supporting a final version.
___
Associated Press reporters Zeke Miller, Jonathan Lemire, Lisa Mascaro, Marcy Gordon and Alexandra Jaffe contributed to this report.
[ad_2]
Source link