Texas Republicans โคLargely oppose Extending ACA Subsidies as Enrollment โขdeadline Looms
WASHINGTON – A growing impasse between โขRepublicansโข in Congress and the Biden governance โover the future of enhanced Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits isโ threatening to โขdrive up health insurance premiums for millions ofโ Americans, with Texas Republicans largely aligned againstโ extending the subsidies. As the November 1st open โคenrollment period approaches, the lackโ of a โขdeal is creating uncertainty for insurersโ andโฃ potentially discouragingโ enrollment, accordingโฃ to Democrats.
The enhanced โtax credits, initially expanded under the 2021 American Rescue Plan to lower ACA premiums โduringโฃ the COVID-19 pandemic, areโข set โคto expire at the end of theโข year. While some Republicans inโ swing districts โคare โขexploring a one-year โฃextension, Texas Republicans are overwhelmingly opposed, arguing โขthe credits are aโข flawed and costly intervention in a broken healthcare system.
Representative J.D.Pfluger wants the subsidies to revert to pre-2021 eligibility โคand cost rules. โRepresentative Jodey Arrington characterized โreforms to the โฃexisting tax credits as akinโ to “putting makeup on a dog.” He added, “I don’t โฃsee how you can โฃmake this or โฃsell this,โค fix it or clean it up,โ in a way that โdoesn’t add to an already bad Obamacare program and a โbrokenโ health care system.”
prominent conservativeโ figures like Representative Chip Roy have explicitly stated their opposition to any โคextension, calling the idea ofโ continuingโฃ “COVID subsidies to โenrich insuranceโฃ companiesโฆtoo stupid for โwords.” โ
The โคdebate โis further complicated by timing.โข Insurers submittedโฃ proposed โค2026 โฃrates inโค August, and โwhile they could โrefile โif a deal is โฃreached, โmakingโ changes becomes โincreasingly difficult as open enrollment nears. Democrats warn that even aโค last-minute agreement may be too late, as many potential โenrolleesโ may have already received initialโค notices of premium increases assuming the credits will expire.
“What โคweโค have happening rightโข now is skyrocketingโฃ health care costs that we can prevent if we extend the tax credits,” said Representative Veronica Escobar, D-El paso. “We’ve not made โฃthisโ a secret to Republicans. We’ve beenโ telling them we need to fix this.”
