President Joe Biden delivers the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol, Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
President Joe Biden is proposing a plan to raise the Medicare tax on high-income Americans and push for additional drug price negotiations to fund the program through 2050.
The plan would raise the tax from 3.8 percent to 5 for those earning above $400,000 per year. The proposal is a bid to get Republicans on board with a 2024 budget bill.
"Millions of Americans have been working their whole lives, paying into Medicare with every working day, and want to know that they can count on Medicare to be there for them when they turn 65," the White House said in a statement. "The President’s Budget extends the life of the Medicare Trust Fund by at least 25 years. It achieves these gains with no benefit cuts—indeed, while lowering costs for Medicare beneficiaries.
The proposal also calls for closing loopholes in existing Medicare taxes and leveraging the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) authority to negotiate prices for high-cost drugs.
The president is set to release his full budget plan on Thursday. Medicare and Social Security account one-third of federal spending, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Concerns about their future solvency are a perennial concern in Congress.
With Donald Trump due on the witness stand next week, testimony from his adult sons in his civil business fraud trial wrapped up Friday with Eric Trump saying he relied completely on accountants and lawyers to assure the accuracy of financial documents key to the case.
The watchdog office overseeing the National Science Foundation is sending investigators to Antarctica's McMurdo Station after hearing concerns about the prevalence of sexual violence at the U.S. research base.
Frederico Klein, a former State Department official, was sentenced to nearly six years in prison after being found guilty on several counts including assault of multiple police officers at the Capitol on Jan. 6.
President Joe Biden and First lady Jill Biden are traveling to Lewiston Maine to pay their respects to the people who were killed there in a mass shooting last week.
The House approved a nearly $14.5 billion military aid package Thursday for Israel, a muscular U.S. response to the war with Hamas but also a partisan approach by new Speaker Mike Johnson that poses a direct challenge to Democrats and President Joe Biden.
The U.S. Senate, circumventing holds by Republican Sen. Tommy Tuberville, on Thursday confirmed the nominations of two senior military leaders, including the first female member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.