break in their out-of-pocket costs for insulin.

This month, Sanofi, one of the# leading manufacturers of the hormon joined two other major pharmaceutical companies in## capping their insulin co-pays at $35.# This comes after years of pr President Biden, lawmakers and activists# for companies to lower their list prices.

White House correspondent Laura Barron-Lopez has# been covering all this, and she joins me here now.

Good to see you, Laura.

LAURA AMNA last year's insulin price caps for# Medicare recipients that took effect.

Tell us about the impact of# both of these things together.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: So, what took effect this# mo Lilly and Novo Nordisk to implement this cap on# insulin co-pays at $35 that took effect January Now, that comes, as you noted, Amna,# after the Medicare cap on insulin cost## at $35 monthly for people.

And that comes# after President Biden also was pressuring## these companies to do this, and after the# provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act## that he passed with those Medicare# insulin caps took effect last year.

Now, just to add some context about the full# impact of this, I want to run through a few## of the numbers about insulin in the United# States.

So, in the U.S., around 8.4 million## diabetics need to inject insulin to survive,# according to the American Diabetes Association.

The three major manufacturers we're talking# about, Sanofi, Novo Nordisk, and Eli Lilly,## who cap their co-pays at $35, make up more# than 90 percent of the insulin market.

And the## Medicare provisions in the Inflation Reduction# Act mean that now about 1.7 million Medicare## beneficiaries stand to benefit from that# $35 monthly co-pay cap on their insulin.

So that shows the significance# of what's been happening.

AMNA NAWAZ: Millions of people,# right, who have to worry about## this.

Are there still people who are# still le LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: So this could impact a lot# of people, but the key difference with what manufacturers did between the Medicare provision# is that the Medicare provi That means that someone goes to a pharmacy,# they're able to benefit from that $35## monthly co-pay, whereas people who under# private insurance or who are not insured,## who don't have insurance who may benefit from# what the manufacturers did, it's not automatic.## They have to register for programs.

And it can# become pretty complicated for them very quickly.

And I spoke to Shaina Kasper, a policy director# at T1International.

They advocate for insulin## access.

And she said that she's fearful that# manufacturers could simply decide at any point## we're not going to provide this reduction in# insulin cost, and that essentially what needs## to happen is a federal mandate, so that way# these manufacturers for uninsured patients,## for people who have private insurance can# benefit from a cap on their insulin cost.

AMNA NAWAZ: So, Laura, you mentioned that# insulin cap for Medicare beneficiaries as## part of President Biden's Inflation Reduction Act.

Are there other health care measures that## are taking effect this year or# next LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: We have seen already two big# on and the free vaccines.

But there's a lot# more to come for Medicare beneficiaries.

So I want to run through the timeline.

Basically,# 60 million people are covered under Medicare.

And## so this month, in January of 2024, prescription# costs of certain drugs for Medicare recipients## is going to be capped at $3,300 annually.# And that's especially helpful for people## with expensive medication for chronic# conditions like arthritis and cancer.

Then, in September of this year, the new# list prices of 10 major drugs are going## to be made public.

That was made possible# by the Inflation Reduction Act's provision## allowing Medicare to negotiate# drug prices with manufacturers.

And then, by 2025, that annual cap on# prescription costs will drop to $2,000.

And,## in 2026, those new drug list prices# that Medicare was allowed to negotiate## will take effect, so people will start to feel it.

Now I spoke to Juliette Cubanski, the# deputy director of Med and this is how she described the significance# of those coming negotiated drug prices.

JULIETTE CUBANSKI, KFF: This has been for years a# concern for policymakers, particularly Democrats,## who thought Medicare should have the ability# to negotiate drug prices with manufacturers.## But prior to the Inflation Reduction# Act, it was actually prohibited by law.

So giving Medicare the ability to negotiate drug# prices is meaningful, because there are 60 million## people covered by Medicare, and that's a lot of# leverage that the federal government now has.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: So, when Juliette says, for# years, that Democrats have been trying to pass## a law that allows Medicare to negotiate drug# prices, she's talking about going back decades## to the George W. Bush administration,# when this was trying to get passed.

And for those who are concerned about the deficit,# she says this has an i JULIETTE CUBANSKI: So the Congressional Budget# Office estimated that Medicare would save around## $300 billion over 10 years as a result of# changes in the Inflation Reduction Act,## and much of that is due to the new negotiation# program that Medicare is currently implementing.

So, Medicare will save money because# the cost of drugs will be lower.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: So what that means,# Amna, is that Medicare costs for American## taxpayers will also be lower, and it will# as well be lower for Med AMNA NAWAZ: So, you have been digging into## this and reporting all Do most people understand all of these# changes?

A is President Biden getting credit for this?

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: So the# short answer, Amna, is that, no, most people don't understand# An d part of that may be because the Inflation# Reduction Act was this big signature la the president passed that includes also climate# change provisions and a number of other eleme that it appears, some Democrats say, is# hard for the average voter to understand.

But I spoke to Cornell Belcher,# a veteran Democratic pollster,## who said that, even more than a year after# the Inflation voters still don't quite know what's in it.

CORNELL BELCHER, Former Obama Campaign Pollster:# The Bi to tell, from everything from historical# infrastructure legislation, to historical# negotiations with pharmaceutical companies.

But, again, the challenge is, and we're# seeing that in -- with the voters, is,## so many of them don't know, and# they're not connecting the dots.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: Juliette# Cubanski echoed that, Amna.

And so this is something that the Biden# campaign is go AMNA NAWAZ: Well, do we plan to hear# more from them on it?

I mean, so far,## the opening reelection campaign# message has democracy.

Will these issues be# a bigger part of t LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: It is going to have to be a# critical part of their mes if the president is going to close that gap# in voters' perceptions around the So being able to lower health care costs# in people's pocketbooks is going to be a## part of that economic message.

And they# have spent tens of millions of dollars## on TV ads and digital ads, some of which# highlight the reduction in insulin caps,## some of which highlight the ability# for Medicare to negotiate drug prices.

But, still, Cornell said that they're going to## have to do a lot more than# just con CORNELL BELCHER: So you have got to flood the box## in a way that not even we had# to do I think he's got to -- the campaign# has got to lean into social media## spaces harder and in a new way than I# think we have ever had to in the past.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: Ultimately, Amna, a lot of# the Democratic lawmakers that I spoke to said## that they want to see Biden make this message more# in key battleground states as ea The key difference, they said, between# 2016 and Hillary Clinton's campaign## and this election cycle and Joe Biden's# campaign is that Democrats in battleground## states say that Biden's campaign# is actually heeding their warnings.

AMNA NAWAZ: All right, that is our White# House correspondent, Laura Barron-Lopez.

Laura, thank you so much.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ