US Biden Faces Resistance to IRA Bill... Opposition from Republicans and Pharmaceutical Industry

U.S. President Joe Biden's Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which he is prioritizing, has encountered obstacles amid attacks from the Republican Party and the pharmaceutical industry.

On the 18th (local time), according to the Washington Post (WP), Republican members of the House Ways and Means Committee passed a bill on the 13th to reduce the budget for expanding clean energy under the IRA and use the funds to cut corporate taxes. The bill included provisions to reduce the tax credit benefit of up to $7,500 for purchasing new electric vehicles and to completely eliminate the tax credit for purchasing used electric vehicles.

President Joe Biden of the United States

On the 14th, in the House Appropriations Committee, led by Appropriations Chair Representative Kay Granger, Republican members proposed cutting $13 billion from the IRA budget allocated for supporting local energy projects, subsidies for purchasing high-efficiency appliances, and implementing eco-friendly building standards.

However, even if such a bill passes the House, it is expected that President Biden will exercise his veto power, making it difficult for the bill to ultimately pass Congress.

Additionally, the pharmaceutical industry is also opposing the implementation of the IRA. Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration on the 16th regarding provisions in the IRA related to reducing prescription drug costs for the elderly.

BMS argued that the government forced drugs to be sold at significantly reduced prices, violating the constitutional rights of businesses, and claimed that government negotiations over prices would negatively impact pharmaceutical companies' development of new drugs.

The Biden administration granted the government the authority to negotiate drug prices paid by Medicare, the public health insurance for the elderly, to pharmaceutical companies through the IRA. The pharmaceutical industry has been lobbying to prevent the government from gaining such authority.

The Biden administration plans to select about 10 prescription drugs for price negotiations by September and proceed with related procedures to apply reduced prices starting in 2026.

Furthermore, global pharmaceutical company Merck also filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration earlier this month to prevent price reductions on highly profitable diabetes and cancer treatments. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which includes major pharmaceutical companies as members, began legal battles with the government on the 9th to block price reductions, and other pharmaceutical companies are also considering lawsuits.

WP reported, "The Republican Party, which has often sided with pharmaceutical companies in the past, is attempting to neutralize the bill by cutting the IRA budget."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.