Shelby, Alabama policy group differ on Inflation Reduction Act | Alabama | #republicans | #Alabama | #GOP


(The Center Square) – One Republican senator from Alabama and one policy group share differing opinions on the Inflation Reduction Act.

The measure, which passed the U.S. Senate late Sunday night with Vice President Kamala Harris casting the deciding vote, is a $740 million taxation and spending bill that is designed to combat climate change and allow the federal government to cap prices on certain prescription medications.

The U.S. House is expected to take up a vote on the measure this week.

U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., who serves as vice chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said the act will result in increased costs for Americans, and will negatively impact families’ budgets and savings.

“Democrats are spending hundreds of billions of dollars to raise taxes and swell the cost of living while the American people are enduring record-high inflation and a declining economy,” Shelby said in a release. “This makes no sense. Right now, Congress should be focused on reducing costs and growing economic investment, not spending $80 billion to double the size and scope of the IRS and hundreds of billions of dollars to combat climate change.”

Shelby said the policies that would be created under the bill “are not what Americans” want or need, expressing his disappointment that his Democratic colleagues in Washington are supporting the legislation.

Under the bill, there would be no new taxes on families who earn less than $400,000 per year, and no new taxes on small businesses. In addition, the bill would give the U.S. Health and Human Services the authority to cap prices on certain prescription medications while providing $30 million in tax credits to encourage green energy.

Meanwhile, Alabama Arise said the bill will be a boon to state residents.

Robyn Hyden, who serves as executive director of the policy group focused on improving lives of residents in the state, said the bill would better the quality of life of state residents.

“The Inflation Reduction Act will help build a healthier future for people across Alabama,” Hyden said in a statement. “This plan will make health coverage more affordable for hundreds of thousands of Alabamians and millions of Americans. It will improve air quality by investing in clean energy and reducing emissions that fuel climate change. And it will pay for these investments by closing tax loopholes that subsidize profitable corporations and wealthy households.”

Alabama Arise said the bill will help save money or patients, in addition to the federal government, by permitting Medicare to “negotiate certain prescription drug prices.

“It will cap the cost of insulin and other out-of-pocket drug expenses for Medicare enrollees,” Hyden said in the release. “And it will extend enhanced subsidies that make health coverage more affordable for many of the 219,000 Alabamians with marketplace plans through the Affordable Care Act.”


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