Setting the Record Straight: Biden’s State of the Union Drug Pricing Comments Are Wildly Misleading

David Williams

March 17, 2022

At his recent State of the Union address, President Biden announced that he and his administration would continue on their dangerous path to socialize the U.S. healthcare system further when he said, “Let’s let Medicare negotiate the price of prescription drugs. They already do it at the VA.” Though he announced this plan in only two sentences, each word was carefully chosen—and told a very different story than the truth. 

“Let’s let Medicare negotiate the price of prescription drugs.” 

President Biden’s proposed Medicare “negotiation” scheme is not negotiation but rather a government-mandated price-setting plan. President Biden chose this misleading phrasing to convince millions of Americans that price controls are the solution to reducing drug costs, which they are certainly not. Branding it as “negotiation” makes it seem like the government and drug manufacturers will negotiate a mutually beneficial price that Medicare will pay for prescription medications. In reality, this drug pricing model would allow the government to arbitrarily determine the cost of a prescription and slap a 95 percent excise tax on drug manufacturers that don’t comply with the new set cost, severely impacting the long-term number of future drugs developed. 

If the federal government derailed Medicare Part D’s competitive structure, the private sector would also lose the incentive to bring affordable medications to market, putting vulnerable patients’ access at risk.

Of course, the left side of the chamber cheered at Biden’s negotiation reference, as many progressive members have championed this policy for years.

 “They already do it at the VA.” Not only is this statementwildly misleading, but it also sets a dangerous precedent for patients depending on new treatments.  

President Biden wasn’t wrong when he claimed the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) “negotiates” prices with drug companies. However, he failed to mention that VA’s current drug pricing model has reduced veterans’ access to critical treatments, forcing many to add on another insurance plan (either private or Medicare Part D coverage) just so they can access the drugs they need. Essentially, Medicare has served as a safety net for veterans suffering from the VA’s broken drug pricing system. 

There will be catastrophic results if Medicare’s drug pricing system is structured the same as the broken system at the VA.  Government shouldn’t be forcing another entire population to supplement their insurance with yet another private insurance plan—and spend more of their hard-earned money in the process. These problems must be seriously considered, or else President Biden’s proposed plan could seriously jeopardize seniors’ access to lifesaving drugs.

President Biden and the Left know that people wouldn’t support their plan if they knew the dirty truth about its impact on patient access, which is why they must use misleading language like “negotiation” and skewed examples to rally support for it. 

With these points in mind, Congress must reject any form of Medicare “negotiation,” whether it’s crammed into a massive spending bill or legislation on its own. President Biden’s call to action on drug pricing at the State of the Union is a politically driven lie and would severely harm Americans’ access to medications.