House Democratic Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries hosted his annual picnic this week at Canarsie Park in Brooklyn this week for older adults. People gathered for food, music, games and entertainment.
Local agencies and nonprofits were onsite with resources and information for all attendees.
At the event, Leader Jeffries highlighted President Biden’s recent announcement of the selection of the first 10 medications for Medicare drug price negotiation. These include life-saving medications commonly used to treat conditions such as diabetes, heart failure and blood cancer.
When passed into law, the Inflation Reduction Act lowered the cost of insulin for every Medicare user, Jeffries said during the event. The drug, which formerly cost thousands of dollars per year, is now priced at $35 a month. Prior to the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, the federal government was prohibited from being able to negotiate lower drug prices.
“We're going to continue in Washington to fight hard on your behalf to make sure that we can put people over politics and, in particular, fight for lower costs and fight for an economy that makes sense for everybody, fight for freedom, defend our democracy, and certainly make sure that no one takes away your Social Security or your Medicare. Not now, not ever,” Jeffries said to the crowd at the picnic.
