In celebration of Black History Month, we’re highlighting the ways that President Biden and Vice President Harris have kept their promise to Black communities by continuing to deliver for them — growing the economy, creating jobs, investing in communities, and fighting for working families. 

DNC National Press Secretary Sarafina Chitika released the following statement: 

“President Biden and Vice President Harris have made historic progress in expanding access to affordable health care — another promise kept to Black communities. The Biden-Harris administration is taking on health care disparities, getting more Black Americans health insurance than ever before, lowering the cost of lifesaving prescription drugs such as insulin, fighting for our reproductive rights, and working to address the maternal mortality crisis for Black women. In this election, our health is on the line. Under Donald Trump’s failed policies, uninsurance rates among Black Americans — and their healthcare costs — skyrocketed. Trump fought to slash Medicaid and Medicare at every turn, and ripped away reproductive freedom from women across the country, disproportionately threatening the lives of Black women. The choice in November is clear: President Biden and Vice President Harris are the only candidates fighting for the health of the Black community.”

President Biden believes health care is a right, and has fought to make it accessible and affordable for all Americans.

CNN: “Obamacare sign-ups hit record 21.3 million as Biden pushes his efforts to lower health care costs”

“Nearly 5 million more people signed up for Obamacare policies for this year compared with last year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which oversees the Affordable Care Act marketplaces, said Wednesday. Notably, about a quarter of people selecting plans were new consumers.”

The Hill: “Biden touts Affordable Care Act enrollment spike” 

“The White House is reporting strong enrollment numbers through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) one week after enrollment began, with 300,000 new customers signing up for plans already.”

Washington Post: “ACA linked to reduced racial disparities, earlier diagnosis and treatment in cancer care”

AARP: “ACA Has Led to More African Americans Getting Health Insurance”

“The number of Black Americans under age 65 without health insurance has dropped by 40 percent since the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), according to a new report by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.”

In 2011 about 7.1 million African Americans lacked coverage, but by 2019 that number had dropped to 4.4 million, according to the report by researchers in HHS’s Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE).”

The Biden-Harris administration is fighting to protect reproductive health care for all Americans.

Politico: “Biden’s top priority for a second term: Abortion rights”

ABC News: “Biden administration announces new steps to protect contraceptives, abortion medication on Roe anniversary” 

“It’s the latest attempt by the federal government to preserve abortion access and protect reproductive health care since the Supreme Court’s decision in June 2022 to end federal protections for abortion rights.”

“To strengthen contraception access, the administration said it will implement several measures, including federal agencies issuing new guidance to “clarify standards” and make sure Food and Drug Administration-approved contraceptive medications are available for free under the Affordable Care Act.”

President Biden delivered on his promise to cap insulin at $35 for seniors on Medicare, which has drastically lowered prices for the roughly 38 percent of Black Medicare beneficiaries with diabetes.

The Root: “Here’s How Biden’s Inflation Act Helps Black Americans With Diabetes”

“Over five million Black Americans live with diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association. Roughly 19 percent of all African Americans in the United States over 20 years old have diabetes, compared to just 7 percent of all white Americans.”

“This could be a huge improvement for many Black Medicare recipients who receive drug coverage and also take insulin. As of 2011, roughly 38 percent of Black Medicare beneficiaries had diabetes, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. And nearly a third of Black Medicare beneficiaries reported health care cost-related problems in 2018.”

CNN: “More Americans can now get insulin for $35” 

“Congress, the White House and new players in the market have increased pressure on insulin manufacturers to lower their prices. Eli Lilly and Sanofi announced that they would institute $35 caps shortly after President Joe Biden called on drugmakers to do so in his State of the Union address last year.”

Under Trump’s administration, the number of uninsured Black Americans skyrocketed. 

KFF News: “2016-2018: The number of uninsured Black Americans increased by nearly 300,000 during the first two years of Trump’s administration, which marked the first increase in the Black uninsured rate since 2013.” 

Politico: “The Affordable Care Act led to historic reductions in racial disparities in access to health care, but progress stalled when the uninsured rate began to increase in 2018.”

Trump’s extreme anti-abortion agenda disproportionately affects Black women — threatening their health and in some cases even their lives.

Texas Tribune: “Facing higher teen pregnancy and maternal mortality rates, Black women will largely bear the brunt of abortion limits”

Vox: “The United States is now a country without a legal right to an abortion. In this new reality, Black women will suffer the most.”

Black women are more likely to live in areas where it’s harder to access contraception.”

“For centuries, Black women have fought for autonomy over their bodies, against government-sanctioned abuse and abuse from intimate partners. The end of a constitutional right to legal abortion makes the fight harder.”

Donald Trump wants to rip away health care from almost 40 million Americans by repealing the Affordable Care Act — a losing agenda which will cost him in November. 

New York Times: “Trump Administration Files Formal Request to Strike Down All of Obamacare” 

TheGrio: “Trump ‘coming for’ Black America’s health care with Obamacare vow” 

“Former President Donald Trump is vowing yet again to repeal the Affordable Care Act, popularly known as Obamacare, which would have devastating impacts on Black communities and their access to affordable and quality health insurance.” 

On his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump, the leading 2024 Republican presidential candidate, wrote that he is “seriously looking at alternatives” to Obamacare, which he argued is too costly.”

CNN: “Obamacare has gotten popular. Trump doesn’t care”

New York Magazine: “Why a Second Trump Presidency Might Try Again to Repeal Obamacare”

Trump attempted to slash Medicare and Social Security programs every single year he was in office.

Washington Post: “Each of his White House budget proposals included cuts to Social Security and Medicare programs.”

Mediaite: “During a Fox News town hall, President Donald Trump promised to cut entitlements like Medicare and Social Security if were to win a second term. … ‘But if you don’t cut something in entitlements, you will never really deal with the debt,’ town hall co-moderator Martha MacCallum interjected, alluding to social safety programs like Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. ‘Oh, we’ll be cutting,’ Trump rushed to confirm.”

Washington Post: “President Trump pledged on Saturday to pursue a permanent cut to the payroll taxes that fund Social Security and Medicare if he wins reelection in November, a hard-to-accomplish political gambit that some experts see as a major headache for the future of the country’s entitlement programs.”