WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) released the following statement after President Joe Biden delivered his State of the Union address to Congress:
“In the last two years, I worked hard with President Biden to lower costs for working families, boost our Made in Wisconsin economy, and create good paying jobs in all corners of our state. I am thrilled that he recognized that work tonight,” said Senator Baldwin. “By working with Democrats and Republicans, we’ve invested in rebuilding America’s roads, bridges and water infrastructure, using American products and American workers. And we made progress to lower the cost of prescription drugs because no one should go broke to get the care they need to stay healthy. I am proud to have delivered for Wisconsin’s families, farmers and businesses, and I look forward to continuing to work with President Biden to invest in our Made in Wisconsin economy and workforce and expand access to affordable health care for all Americans.”
President Biden highlighted several key priorities Senator Baldwin has long worked hard for during his speech, including:
Investing in Made in America Economy – PresidentBiden announced he would follow through on a provision that Senator Baldwin included in the infrastructure law requiring construction materials used in federally-funded infrastructure projects to be made in the US. This provision was originally included in Senator Baldwin’s bipartisan Made in America Act to strengthen Buy America requirements for the federal government in order to support American businesses, manufacturers, and workers.
President Biden also highlighted a robust and growing Made in America economy, including $700 billion in announced private investment in manufacturing, utilities, and energy from more than 200 companies in all 50 states driven by the semiconductor, energy, electric vehicles and batteries, and other cutting-edge sectors thanks to Baldwin-supported legislation like the CHIPS and Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act(IRA). President Biden also highlighted how these Baldwin-supported victories have helped create more than 800,000 manufacturing jobs nationwide.
Lowering the Costs of Health Care and Prescription Drugs – President Biden called for capping the cost of insulin for all Americans. Senator Baldwin supports and is working to pass legislation to cap out-of-pocketinsulin costs at $35 per month for private group or individual plans. This builds on Senator Baldwin’s support for the IRAwhich capped the cost of insulin for seniors on Medicare at $35 per month and made vaccines such as the shingles vaccine available with no co-pay or out-of-pocket cost. Thanks to the new law, Medicare will also be able to negotiate drug prices and cap out-of-pocket costs at $2,000 per year under Part D, and drug companies will pay rebates to Medicare if they try to hike their prices faster than the rate of inflation.The IRA also extended premium tax credits for plans purchased on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace, helping a record-setting 16.3 million people sign up for ACA coverage this year, and reducing the national uninsured rate to an all-time low last year.
An online version of this release is available here.
