...
By Jasmine Laws
Reporter
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
Millions of Americans face the prospect of huge rises in health insurance premiums in the new year.
On Wednesday, House Republicans passed a GOP health care package which outlined an alternative, among other policies, to the Obamacare Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies.
Rather than choosing to extend the enhanced tax credits, the GOP health care package proposes a number of new policies and reforms that many Republicans argue will reduce health care costs for more Americans than the ACA subsidies.
Read More on News
While the bill has passed through the House, it is not certain if it will have the same success in the Senate, meaning—in the absence of legislation to extend the subsidies—it seems inevitable that millions will face extremely high increases in ACA premiums in the New Year.
Why It Matters
The enhanced tax credits, which gave millions more Americans access to ACA-compliant health plans on the Marketplace, have been a key point of contention in Congress.
They sat at the forefront of debate between the parties while they tried to pass stopgap funding legislation during the shutdown, and they continue to be an issue that lawmakers are struggling with.
If the subsidies expire at the end of the year, which will happen if no legislation is passed to extend them before the New Year, premiums for ACA plans are expected to go up by an average of 75 percent, according to analysis by the Peterson Center on Healthcare and KFF.
...
What To Know
The GOP bill, titled the Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act, included proposals to expand association health plans, which enable small businesses in the same industry to join together to offer a large group coverage, and to fund cost-sharing reductions, which is a provision of the ACA that reduces out-of-pocket costs for Silver plan enrollees who have household incomes up to 250 percent of the federal poverty level.
The latter move will reportedly reduce ACA premium costs by 11 percent.
It would also expand access to "stop-loss" policies for employers, which protect them against catastrophic health claims—such as transplants, surgeries, cancer care and more—at a time when these kinds of claims are becoming increasingly common amid the rise of chronic health conditions, according to the consulting firm Mercer.
These changes, among others proposed in the bill, are predicted to increase the uninsured population by 100,000, while saving the government $35.6 billion over 10 years, according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO). The main cost saver would be allowing the ACA subsidies to expire while implementing the cost sharing reductions.
In the vote on December 17, the bill passed by 216-211, but it is thought that it's success will stop when it reaches the Senate.
Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky was the only Republican to vote against the bill. Massie's press office pointed Newsweek to his post on X when approached for comment: "Why I voted No on the 'placebo' GOP health care bill: Despite being sold as 'market-based reform' and codifying Association Health Plans, it keeps core Obamacare rules intact and prevents true price competition. @SenRandPaul has a far better solution we should have voted on!"
If the ACA subsidies expire, it is thought that millions will lose their health care coverage—a CBO projection predicts that up to 4 million Americans would lose coverage.
Those earning between $50,000 and $75,000 annually will be particularly affected and have to face much more expensive premiums, according to the American Journal of Managed Care.
However, the decision by the GOP to exclude an extension of the ACA subsidies from its legislation has prompted uproar among some Republicans, who signed a Democratic discharge petition that would enforce a vote on extending the enhanced tax credits for three years.
House Speaker Mike Johnson has said that the discharge petition will get a vote in the first week of January.
What People Are Saying
House Speaker Mike Johnson wrote in a post on X: "15 years ago, Democrats broke our health care system—and their solution today is to simply throw BILLIONS more taxpayer dollars to big health insurance companies to hide the cost of their failures. Republicans are delivering lower costs with the Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act—by addressing many of the ROOT CAUSES of rising premiums under Democrat policies. Lower costs. More choice. Better care. That’s what our bill delivers."
Republican Representative Eli Crane for Arizona wrote in a post on X: "Every single democrat just voted against lowering your health care costs. All because it keeps them from pumping billions to their donors in the health care industrial complex. They don’t want to help you. They want to control you."
Republican Representative Mike Lawler for New York wrote in a post on X: "My colleagues and I have worked in good faith to extend ACA subsidies for the American people who truly need them. These premium tax credits are set to expire, and we have a responsibility to govern, not delay. This is about doing the job we were elected to do and delivering real results for working families."
What Happens Next
The bill still has to go through the Senate before it can be passed, however reports say it is unlikely that the Senate will pass the legislation.
This means that the expiration of the enhanced tax credits on December 31 is drawing ever closer without legislation passed to extend them.
Update 12/18/25, 9:16 a.m. ET: This article has been updated following response from Massie's office.
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines