Adrienne Martin and her family are starting the New Year off without healthcare. The 47-year-old Texas mother had to make a difficult choice when she found out her monthly healthcare premium was increasing in 2026 from what she described as a manageable $630 (£467) to an unaffordable $2,400 (£1,781). Her husband depends on an IV medication to treat a blood-clotting disease that costs $70,000 a month without insurance. Knowing their benefits would expire, the family stockpiled the drug to survive the first few months of the year. It would be like paying two mortgage payments, she said of the new monthly price for healthcare. We can't pay $30,000 for insurance a year. Ms Martin and her family are not the only ones facing this conundrum. Millions of Americans will see their healthcare bills skyrocket when these subsidies, which were provided through the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, expire.
Some members of Congress on both sides of the aisle attempted to extend these subsidies into 2026, but Washington was gridlocked. A vote in the new year could offer hope, but until then, many like Ms Martin will have to live without insurance or see their bills steeply increase.
About 24 million Americans buy health insurance through the ACA marketplace, and most were used to receiving tax credits to lower the monthly price. Those tax credits, also referred to as subsidies, were first introduced through former President Barack Obama's ACA in 2014, expanded during Covid, but their future remains uncertain following a long government shutdown over conflicting priorities. Without the subsidies, the monthly cost of healthcare could rise by 114% on average, according to health research non-profit KFF.
Families like Maddie Bannister's, who previously paid $124 a month for their health insurance, are now facing monthly costs of $908. Others are reverting to Medicaid as they scramble for affordable options amidst the chaos of expiring ACA benefits. A vote on extending these vital subsidies in Congress is anticipated, but economic pressures remain high as many American families kick off 2026 without healthcare coverage.
Some members of Congress on both sides of the aisle attempted to extend these subsidies into 2026, but Washington was gridlocked. A vote in the new year could offer hope, but until then, many like Ms Martin will have to live without insurance or see their bills steeply increase.
About 24 million Americans buy health insurance through the ACA marketplace, and most were used to receiving tax credits to lower the monthly price. Those tax credits, also referred to as subsidies, were first introduced through former President Barack Obama's ACA in 2014, expanded during Covid, but their future remains uncertain following a long government shutdown over conflicting priorities. Without the subsidies, the monthly cost of healthcare could rise by 114% on average, according to health research non-profit KFF.
Families like Maddie Bannister's, who previously paid $124 a month for their health insurance, are now facing monthly costs of $908. Others are reverting to Medicaid as they scramble for affordable options amidst the chaos of expiring ACA benefits. A vote on extending these vital subsidies in Congress is anticipated, but economic pressures remain high as many American families kick off 2026 without healthcare coverage.
