A group of front-line House Republicans on Tuesday called on Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) to “immediately” address the expiring enhanced ObamaCare tax credits once the government shutdown ends.
Led by Reps. Jeff Van Drew (R-N.J.) and Jen Kiggans (R-Va.), 13 lawmakers told Johnson that millions of their constituents would face a massive spike in health premiums without an extension of the subsidies before their expiration at the end of the year.
“Our Conference and President Trump have been clear that we will not take healthcare away from families who depend on it. This is our opportunity to demonstrate that commitment through action,” the lawmakers wrote.
They rejected the Democratic demand that a tax credit extension be tied to the government shutdown and urged Johnson to “chart a conservative path that protects working families in our districts across the country” once the government reopens.
While the moderate Republicans pushed for changes to the tax credits, many hard-line conservatives remain outright opposed to any extension at all — a path that Republican pollsters and allies of President Trump say would be a mistake heading into the midterm elections.
The letter from moderates shows some growing GOP anxiety over the seeming lack of a public plan from leadership to extend the subsidies.
Most Americans who purchase health insurance through Affordable Care Act (ACA) plans are eligible for subsidies to make their premiums more affordable. Congress made the subsidies more generous during the pandemic, but unless Congress extends them again, they are set to revert to the original, lower levels.
Consumers with 2026 ACA marketplace plans are already seeing substantially higher premiums as state and federal “window shopping” allows people to see the costs of their plans ahead of the Nov. 1 start of open enrollment. Insurers are anticipating the enhanced subsidies will expire and are pricing their coverage accordingly.
If that were to happen, premiums for subsidized enrollees would more than double on average, according to health policy research group KFF.
The government has been shut down for 21 days, and there is no end in sight. Democrats maintain they won’t vote for a clean funding bill to reopen the government without an extension of the enhanced tax credits and other changes related to spending and appropriations.
Kiggans is the main sponsor of a bill to extend the subsidies for a year. It has 28 bipartisan co-sponsors, equally divided between the two parties.
But the House has been out of session for a month, and Johnson says he won’t bring members back until Democrats vote to reopen the government.
