One year ago this week, President Joe Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) into law, a once-in-a-generation piece of legislation that's already tackling climate change and cutting health care costs.
Yet, despite how popular its programs actually are, polling shows us that too few people know about these benefits or how we gained them—something we desperately need to change. At the same time, bad actors who want to divide the country are spreading conspiracy theories or outright lying about its benefits. Let's start with the facts:
In the past year, the IRA has already started to positively impact communities across the country no matter where people live or their backgrounds. It has already helped families keep money in their pockets and moved us closer to a clean energy future that every American will benefit from—whether Black, brown, or white.
In fact, the bill provided billions of dollars improving the energy grid and bringing clean jobs to communities from coast to coast. In the last year, it has already created more than 170,000 good-paying jobs in suburban, rural, and metropolitan communities alike across 41 states.
It also includes funding to lower healthcare costs, especially for seniors. Every single person who gets their insulin through Medicare will see lower monthly costs, thanks to the $35 cap on monthly insulin costs—meaning 1.5 million people are saving hundreds of dollars a year. The IRA also reduces health insurance premiums by up to $800 for people who buy insurance on their own.
What's more: It's leveling the playing field by ensuring that no family making less than $400,000 will see their taxes go up and making the big corporations and the ultra-wealthy pay their fair share.
The American people made this all possible through collective action, by holding our government accountable for improving our communities. And while there's still more work to be done when it comes to defeating corporate greed and creating meaningful solutions to lowering costs for working families, it's clear that President Biden and progressive lawmakers in Congress delivered on their promises by passing the IRA.
Yet, there are some on the far right who are actively working to undermine or even reverse this progress made by an active and inclusive government—all to ensure that the wealthy and well-connected stay on top. A handful of corporate-backed politicians are even attempting to roll back some of the most popular and most tangible benefits of the program, like provisions that lower drug prices or eliminating clean energy components that curb pollution.
While these attempts have failed so far, we must work together to stop them from turning back the clock on the progress made and build even more momentum.
By publicly celebrating these landmark programs, educating the public, and having one-on-one conversations in communities across the country, Indivisible Civics — through our Powering Progress initiative — is making sure our friends and family understand the tangible benefits available to them now, and are just a little less susceptible to the divide and conquer dog whistle messaging coming from the far right.
What that means in practice is engaging directly with the community—from holding roundtables and town halls so constituents can ask questions of local leaders implementing the law, to tabling at public health fairs and local festivals to make sure families know who is responsible for their lower drug prices.
By doing the work to educate the public, we can continue to put power in the hands of the American people to make historic legislation like the Inflation Reduction Act possible in the future – and prove what an active and inclusive government can accomplish along the way.
Mary Small serves as the chief strategy officer for Indivisible Project, one of the country's largest grassroots organizations. Powering Progress is a project of Indivisible Civics, a 501(c)(3) organization that supports civic engagement.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
