Sen. Raphael G. Warnock

Maddy summaryS 526, the Pharmacy Benefit Manager Transparency Act of 2025, requires pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) - the middlemen managing drug coverage for health plans - to disclose financial details and stop unfair practices. It prohibits PBMs from keeping price differences between what they charge health plans and pay pharmacies, arbitrarily clawing back payments, or inflating fees to offset government-mandated changes. PBMs must annually report to the FTC and HHS on rebate sharing, fee structures, formulary changes, and reimbursement differences, including whether drug tier shifts were influenced by manufacturers. This directly affects PBMs, pharmacies, health plans, and patients by increasing transparency in drug pricing and reimbursement.

Maddy summaryS 529, the Capping Prescription Costs Act of 2025, limits how much individuals and families must pay annually out-of-pocket for prescription drugs under most health insurance plans. Starting in 2026, it caps these costs at $2,000 per person or $4,000 per family per year, with automatic annual adjustments using the medical care inflation rate (CPI). This applies to both individual health plans (under the Affordable Care Act) and group health plans (like employer-sponsored coverage), as amended across multiple federal laws. The bill does not change drug prices but directly affects millions of health plan enrollees by setting a maximum annual cost for covered prescriptions.

Maddy summaryThis resolution expresses the Senate's non-binding position that the U.S. should not deploy military assets or personnel to Gaza for the purpose of "taking over" the territory. It directly addresses the executive branch, opposing any military actions that could lead to U.S. control of Gaza, which the Senate cites as violating constitutional requirements for congressional authorization of military force. The resolution references President Trump's February 4, 2025, comments about taking over Gaza and emphasizes concerns about regional relations, humanitarian impacts, and taxpayer costs. It does not create new law but formally states the Senate's opposition to such military deployments.

Maddy summarySRES 64 is a Senate resolution honoring the 67 victims of a mid-air collision between American Airlines Flight 5342 and a U.S. Army aircraft near Washington, D.C., on January 29, 2025. It directly affects the families, friends, and communities of the victims, who were from multiple U.S. states and several countries. The resolution formally commemorates the lives lost, offers condolences to grieving families, and expresses gratitude to the 42 emergency response agencies that assisted in rescue and recovery efforts. As a commemorative resolution, it has no policy or legal effect beyond expressing collective mourning and recognition.

Maddy summaryThis bill requires the IRS to use barcode scanning and optical character recognition (OCR) technology to convert paper tax returns into digital format. It applies to electronically prepared but paper-filed returns (which must include a scannable barcode) and manually prepared paper returns (which will be processed via scanning software). The law phases in implementation over 12-24 months depending on return type, with limited exceptions allowed only if the IRS reports to Congress. It does not change tax laws or rates, but aims to improve processing efficiency for paper-based filings.

Protecting Sensitive Locations Act This bill prohibits immigration enforcement actions within 1,000 feet of a sensitive location except in exigent circumstances, such as the imminent risk of death, violence, or physical harm to any person. Sensitive locations include  health care facilities; schools and school bus stops; places that provide assistance for people such as children, pregnant women, and abuse victims; child care facilities; places that provide disaster or emergency services; places of worship; courthouses and lawyers’ offices; facilities used as polling places; certain labor union facilities; and public assistance offices. The prohibition shall apply to Department of Homeland Security officers and agents, as well as state employees pursuing immigration enforcement actions. If an enforcement action is carried out in violation of this prohibition (1) no information resulting from the action may be entered into the record in a resulting removal proceeding, and (2) the affected individual may move to immediately terminate such a proceeding. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection shall annually report to Congress about enforcement actions taken at sensitive locations in the preceding year.

Maddy summaryS 473, the SENIOR Act, requires the federal government to assess loneliness among older adults as part of existing aging programs. It amends the Older Americans Act to explicitly include "loneliness" alongside "social isolation" in program definitions and mandates a report on how current programs address loneliness's health impacts. The report must analyze loneliness prevalence, health effects, program effectiveness, and the role of family connections across generations, with an interim report due in 2 years and a final report in 5 years. This bill directly affects older individuals identified as having "greatest social need" through programs funded by the Administration on Aging. The legislation focuses on data collection and evaluation, not new funding or immediate policy changes.

Maddy summaryS 475, the Alternatives to PAIN Act, changes Medicare Part D coverage to make non-opioid pain management drugs more accessible and affordable for beneficiaries. It requires Medicare plans to cover qualifying non-opioid pain drugs without deductibles and place them on the lowest cost-sharing tier (meaning patients pay the least out-of-pocket) starting in 2026. The bill also prohibits plans from requiring step therapy (forcing patients to try opioids first) or prior authorization for these specific drugs. Qualifying drugs must treat acute pain (like post-surgery), not work on opioid receptors, have no equivalent alternatives, and meet cost thresholds. This directly affects Medicare Part D beneficiaries needing pain management and the plans that cover them.

Maddy summaryThis bill excludes capital gains from the sale of certain property rights when sold to organizations participating in the Department of Defense's REPI program. The REPI program helps military bases protect environmentally sensitive land while maintaining training readiness. Landowners selling qualifying property - including full ownership, remainder interests, or perpetual land use restrictions - to REPI-participating organizations can exclude the sale profit from taxable income. It directly affects property owners who sell to REPI programs, with specific rules for family-owned entities.

Maddy summaryS 422, the Right to Contraception Act, establishes a federal statutory right for individuals to access contraceptives and for healthcare providers to offer contraceptive services, free from state restrictions. It directly affects all Americans seeking or providing contraception, particularly protecting historically marginalized groups like people of color, immigrants, LGBTQ+ individuals, and low-income or rural residents who face barriers to care. The bill overrides state laws that restrict access - such as bans on specific contraceptives, provider refusal policies based on personal beliefs, or Medicaid restrictions - and prohibits government actions that impede this right. Enforcement allows the Attorney General or affected individuals to challenge violations in court, with courts required to strike down restrictive laws.