Where Blame Will Fall If Subsidies Expire
WASHINGTON (AP) — Fifty-two-year-old Dinam Bigny sank into debt and had to get a roommate this year, in part because of health insurance premiums that cost him nearly $900 per month.
Next year, those monthly fees will rise by $200 — a significant enough increase that the program manager in Aldie, Virginia, has resigned himself to finding cheaper coverage.
“I won’t be able to pay it, because I really drained out any savings that I have right now,” he said. “Emergency fund is still draining out — that’s the scary part.”
Bigny is among the many Americans dependent on Affordable Care Act marketplace health insurance plans who are already struggling with the high cost of health care, according to a new survey from the health care research nonprofit KFF.
Most of the more than 1,300 enrollees surveyed in early November say they anticipate that their health costs will be impacted next year if Congress doesn’t extend expiring COVID-era tax credits that help more than 90% of enrollees pay for health insurance premiums, per KFF. The possibility of an extension looks increasingly unlikely.
The enhanced premium tax credits set to expire at the end of this year have been at the center of recent tensions in Congress, with Democrats calling for a straight extension and several Republican lawmakers vehemently opposed to the idea. Their inability to agree on a path forward fueled a record 43-day government shutdown earlier this fall.
KFF’s poll reveals that marketplace enrollees — most of whom say they would be directly impacted by the subsidies expiring — overwhelmingly support an extension. The survey found this group is more likely to blame Trump and Republicans in Congress than Democrats if the tax credits are left to expire.
About 6 in 10 Affordable Care Act enrollees find it “somewhat” or “very” difficult to afford out-of-pocket costs for medical care, such as deductibles and copays. That exceeds the roughly half of enrollees who find it challenging to afford health insurance premiums. Most also say they could not afford a $300 per year increase in their health insurance costs without significantly disrupting their household finances.
Larry Griffin, a 56-year-old investment banker and financial adviser in Paso Robles, California, already pays $920 a month for his gold-level health plan through the state’s insurance marketplace. He says that price will go up to about $1,400 a month next year — alongside jumps in copays and his out-of-pocket maximum.
He’s concerned the increases will affect his ability to save money for his upcoming retirement, but with the recent amputation of his left leg below the knee, as well as other health issues, he said he can’t risk going off health insurance or downgrading his plan.
Griffin is among the roughly three-quarters of marketplace enrollees who say health insurance is “very important” for their ability to access the health care they need.
Patricia Roberts, 52, a full-time caregiver for her daughter in Auburn, Alabama, received a notice saying her monthly health insurance premiums would rise from around $800 a month to $1,100 a month next year — but she was later notified the monthly cost would actually be more than $1,400.
Yvette Laugier, 56, a Republican in Chicago, said while her income is too high to qualify her for the enhanced premium tax credits, she supports extending them temporarily with additional fraud protections to give lower-income enrollees more time to consider their options. Among those who think Congress should extend the credits, about 4 in 10 say Trump would deserve “most of the blame” if they were allowed to expire and roughly one-third say that about Republicans in Congress. Democrats in Congress are much less likely to receive blame: only 23% of enrollees say they would deserve the bulk of responsibility.
Bigny, in Virginia, said the blame should be split between both Democrats and Republicans. But he has hope they can come to a compromise and potentially a temporary extension in the coming weeks.
