State of the Union was a start, but more to be done

For one of my classes, I had to watch the State of the Union address and it sparked a few thoughts. I have never written a letter to a newspaper before, but given the recent address and the state of American politics, I thought now is as good a time to start as ever.

In the address President Joe Biden talks about the Inflation Reduction Act, which was established to focus on health care, job opportunities, and climate and energy security. His address primarily focused on health care and his use of insulin as an example of the work being done. A bill that was passed that I wasn’t even aware of, was a cap on insulin at $35 a month for seniors with Medicare.

While still expensive for something that takes all of $13 to produce, it is a vast improvement.

He said the next step is to make that price cap for everyone. This is one step of hopefully many in the right direction. Health care and medicine that people rely on to survive shouldn’t be priced to a point where only those privileged can get it.

While the topic of making health care more affordable and universal was fantastic, it seems he didn’t think to make the fight on homelessness the same. While he does broach the topic of homelessness, it’s only through the lens of veterans. Obviously, veterans should not be homeless, and the country needs to evaluate and provide help to those who can’t afford homes for any number of factors. But that help shouldn’t be limited to just those who fought for our country. It should be applied to everyone because they are human. It is in our constitution to provide for general welfare, and that goes for all citizens. — Dawson Valcich, Annapolis Valcich is a freshman at Salve Regina University