Nov. 1 has been a key date in the fight over the government shutdown, as Democrats have long argued that if the enhanced federal subsidies aren’t renewed by that point, the impact on consumers will be dramatic.
Democrats blame Republicans for not wanting to extend the enhanced subsidies and not caring about the cost to consumers, while many Republicans say the tax credits mask the underlying failure of ObamaCare, and the whole system needs changing. According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), a permanent extension will cost about $350 billion over the next decade.
Republicans say any health negotiations will happen after the government is open; Democrats say they have to happen now.
The health research nonprofit KFF said the average increase in premiums for ACA plans will be 26 percent next year, based on data for “benchmark” silver plans, which are the mid-tier plans in each region that most people purchase and are used to set the subsidy amounts.
But KFF found the amount that people pay for coverage is set to rise 114 percent on average because Congress has not extended the enhanced tax credits that help people afford insurance plans.
Democrats have leaned heavily on expanding the subsidies as part of their challenge to the GOP-led continuing resolution that would reopen the government after funding lapsed nearly a month ago.
“The COVID-era subsidies don’t expire until the end of December. There are all sorts of discussions going on. There needs to be massive reform,” Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said Thursday. “There needs to be income caps and eliminate fraud, waste and abuse that is rife in those programs.
