At Kitchen Tables Across the Nation, Americans Are Preparing to Make Impossible Choices
For everyday Americans, farmers, small business owners, and seniors, the GOP health care crisis is simply unbearable. Because Donald Trump and Republicans ripped away health care tax credits from over 24 million Americans, hard-working people are now logging onto the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace for open enrollment, finding that their health plans are more than double last year’s, and are making gut-wrenching decisions. Coverage depicts the toll on real people: A Maine woman is deciding if being able to walk and see with her right eye is worth the financial cost, because without the tax credits, she will have to make agonizing financial tradeoffs on an already tight budget. A Wisconsin small business owner is concerned about losing 30 to 40% of his team members because, without the critical tax credits, he will be unable to cover his employees’ health insurance.
Americans deserve to know exactly who is being screwed over by Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress, and Protect Our Care will continue to tell their stories. The following 29 haunting accounts — along with last week’s 18 testimonies — come from hard-working Americans that the GOP decided to put on the chopping block to fund tax breaks for their billionaire friends.
Kristin Fuhrmann-Simmons, Kennebunkport, Maine
- “‘Without those tax credits, our monthly premium would be $2,000 a month,’ she said. ‘With those enhanced tax credits, we pay $11 a month for our health care premium.’”
- “‘We live very tightly, we have an exacting budget,’ she said, explaining both her and her husband are self-employed. ‘If I have to say, OK, I’m going to skip my spinal tap, then I have to look, is that pressure going to go up? Is the demyelinating lesion in my eye going to degrade so that my vision disappears in my right eye? What am I trading off the financials for? Maybe I’ll go blind. Maybe I won’t be able to walk as well. That’s a really difficult decision to make.’” [WMTW]
Dan Jacobs, Restaurant Owner, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
- “Jacobs—who has a pre-existing condition called Kennedy’s Disease—said if the subsidies expire at the end of the year, he could either become uninsurable or the cost would be so high he’d drop his own health coverage. ‘I go to the ALS clinic once or twice a year,’ Jacobs said. ‘I see a general practitioner once a year—at least once a year—if not twice… I have to have this extra coverage just in case something happens. Like I am prone to falling. If I fall and I break something, I’ve gotta have that stability of insurance there.’ […] ‘This is so incredibly shortsighted and feels so much like chaos for the pure sake of creating chaos,’ he said”
- “Jacobs said his biggest fear is losing a chunk of his team members, who might need to leave his restaurants to find employers who provide more affordable health care. And if prices skyrocket, he won’t be able to subsidize as much of the cost of insurance for the employees who do stay. […] ‘I don’t think I’m alone here. I think you’re going to see small businesses closing, and this is what makes Milwaukee and the greater state of Wisconsin special are our small businesses,’ Jacobs said. ‘And you lose something like this, and I think you’re going to lose what makes us so special, and I think that, to me, is the biggest loss of all.’” [Spectrum News]
Cheri Roberts, 62, Chattanooga, Tennessee
- “Chattanooga resident Cheri Roberts, 62, said on Wednesday that if the shutdown of the federal government continues, she worries her very health could hang in the balance. ‘I see eight specialists and am looking at upcoming surgeries. I couldn’t afford (health insurance) premiums without (federal subsidies),’ she said by phone. ‘You know, I’m not trying to exaggerate, but I might die if I stop going to the doctor.’” [Chattanooga Times Free Press]
Jeff Feldman, 60, Phoenix, Arizona
- “Feldman estimates his monthly premiums will triple — from $300 to $900, while his $9,000 yearly deductible will likely go unchanged. ‘They just priced me right out of the market,’ he said. ‘I have two jobs, and I’m going to start driving for Uber and Lyft just to get some extra money. And even with that, I can’t afford $900 a month.’ Instead, he said, he plans to go uninsured next year and put the money that would have gone toward his premium into a savings account for medical emergencies.” [NBC]
Lindsay Corley, 40, Atlanta, Georgia
- “The syndrome responds to treatments, including specialty drugs that Corley pays for with insurance she gets from the Affordable Care Act. ‘It’s the difference between having a quality of life and having no quality of life,’ she told me. ‘I’d be spending my life on a couch.’”
- “But she says that the coverage is enough for her to get by—barely—and that she’ll be in big trouble if its price jumps. ‘Will it mean I have to move back with my parents?’ Corley said. ‘Will I have to take less medication, and just be in a lot more pain? These are the things that go through your mind. I’m not sure people understand that.’” [The Bulwark]
Tami Butters, 64, Denver, Colorado
- “Butters, 64, expects to pay about $1,000 per month if she keeps the same insurance plan she bought on Colorado’s marketplace this year. Her husband, who is turning 65, will be eligible for Medicare, or they’d have to pay closer to $2,000 in monthly premiums, she said.”
- “‘For us, it means we may not be able to enjoy everything we planned for in retirement,’ she said during a news conference held by U.S. Rep. Brittany Pettersen and Gov. Jared Polis on Thursday afternoon. ‘For others, it may mean choosing between paying for housing and paying for food.’” [Denver Post]
Brady Reiter, Georgia
- “He posted on social media saying the same health insurance plan for his family of five is going up by more than $2,000 a month. Reiter is worried this will force him or his wife to return to their former jobs. ‘We left those to run this, and now we’re figuring if one of us has to go back to get insurance because I don’t know how we’d both be in this and pay a couple thousand dollars a month for insurance. It’s just not something we can do,’ he said.” [WSB-TV]
Jessica Altman, California
- “‘Californians are going to be facing a double whammy: premiums going up and tax credits going away,’ Altman said. ‘We estimate that as many as 400,000 of our current enrollees will disenroll and effectively be priced out of the health insurance that they have today. That is a devastating outcome.’”
- “‘$100, $150, $200 — that’s meaningful to people living on fixed incomes,’ Altman said. ‘Where is that money coming from when you’re living paycheck to paycheck?’” [Los Angeles Times]
Scott Darius, Florida
- “Scott Darius, executive director of nonprofit Florida Voices for Health, said working-class residents and small business owners have come to rely on these plans at a time of persistent inflation.”
- “‘That’s who will suffer with the expiration of these tax credits. It’s people who are working really hard, sometimes working multiple jobs, just jobs that don’t provide health coverage,’ Darius said in an interview.” [Reuters]
Austin Jeha, 24, San Roman, California
- “Austin Jeha, a 24-year-old medical billing professional from San Ramon, California, relies on insurance to help pay for specialty care for his ulcerative colitis. Jeha’s new monthly premium is set to rise to $436 from $215.”
- “Jeha regularly receives treatment from a specialist, handing over an $85 co-pay. ‘You’re at a higher risk of colon cancer,’ he said, so doctors ‘want to check in to see if you’re in remission or not.’” [Reuters]
John Costin, Sanford, Maine
- “Costin, a small business owner in Sanford, said the tax credits make a huge difference for him and his wife. Without them, he estimates their premium and out-of-pocket costs will increase by $25,000 next year. ‘That’s not doable on our income.’” [News Center Maine]
Stacy Cox, Kanab, Utah
- “Stacy Cox used one word repeatedly as she described how she felt after learning her ACA premium could jump over 300% without the enhanced tax credits: ‘devastating.’”
- “‘I don’t know if I’ve ever cried opening a letter from an insurance or before, but it happened this time,’ she told ABC News. Cox’s premium this year has been $495.32 for coverage for her and her husband. Without the credit in 2026, she was informed that it’s increasing to $2,168.68. ‘It’s devastating because we can’t afford that,’ she said. ‘Just that bill right there, that’s more than our mortgage, our insurance, most of our food. That’s what we’re paying per month to live. We can’t afford to double what it costs for us to live just to have health insurance.’”
- “‘This will devastate us if we tried to pay it,’” she added. [ABC]
Timothy McCann, 42, Elmwood Park, New Jersey
- “Timothy McCann, a 42-year-old financial professional based in Elmwood Park, New Jersey, expects his monthly insurance premium to increase to $1,851 from $1,517, according to the Healthcare.gov website. McCann purchased the insurance to cover treatments for him and his wife, who both have autoimmune diseases, and kidney surgery for his three-year-old son.”
- “‘We need constant visits, so it’s probably a net gain at the end of the day. But it’s still a crazy amount of money to spend,’ said McCann, whose total out-of-pocket medical expenses reached $33,000 this year.” [Reuters]
Samatha Merrill, 59, North Berwick, Maine
- “Merrill, 59, of North Berwick, said the letter indicated her premiums would jump from $478 to $1,262 per month if ACA tax credits, which help pay health insurance premiums for millions of Americans, expire this year. That would amount to more than $15,000 per year for health insurance, of her $65,000 annual income as a self-employed mental health counselor.”
- “‘I would likely have to shutter the doors of my business and go back to working for a company’ to get employer-based health insurance, said Merrill, who became self-employed about five years ago. ‘You like to think that if you work hard and make the right decisions, that you’ll be rewarded. In this case, it’s a giant plot twist.’” [Central Maine]
Rachel and Chris LaCasse-Ford, Black Earth, Wisconsin
- “Chris has a preexisting condition and must have a plan that covers his medication. That means he has to find an insurance plan that covers the prescription, and that almost always means a higher premium. ‘He really couldn’t be uninsured,’ LaCasse-Ford said. ‘So that is really scary.’ Without the premium tax credits, she anticipates his health insurance will cost as much as the plan for her and her two children combined.” [Cap Times]
Ossian Riday, 54, Topsham, Maine
- “Riday, 54, a self-employed software developer from Topsham, said his premiums would go from about $675 per month for a household of three, to $2,000 monthly. That’s for a bronze plan, the cheapest available, with high deductibles. He said his family is healthy and doing well financially, so they can afford the higher costs, but for many the increases would be a struggle.”
- “‘What are we going to do? I don’t know, but something has to give,’ Riday said. ‘These numbers are staggering.’” [Central Maine]
Lindsay and Brent Wolsey, Bluffdale, Utah
- “Brent suffered an aneurysm in February 2024, leaving him paralyzed on his left side. Since then, Lindsay has been his full-time caregiver. ‘Our situation is something that no one can control,’ Brent said.”
- “The Wolseys used to pay about $48 per month for their plan. Now, they’re bracing for nearly $300 a month. And without federal subsidies, it could top $1,700. “I’ve debated not getting coverage myself and just covering Brent,” Lindsay said. “It’s frustrating. And you feel absolutely powerless.” [KSL-TV]
Chelsea Avirett, 45, Rockland, Maine
- “Chelsea Avirett, 45, of Rockland, said her ACA plan, which covers herself and her husband, is set to increase from about $1,100 per month to $1,500 if the credits aren’t extended.”
- “‘That will be more than our mortgage payment, so it’s a bit appalling,’ said Avirett, who is self-employed and runs an online job board. ‘It’s really challenging for small business owners who don’t have any other options for health insurance.’” [Central Maine]
Thomas Johnson, Macoupin County, Illinois
- “‘If my premium goes up to $900, $1,200, whatever I’m hearing, I can’t afford that without tapping into my Roth IRA, my 401(k),’ he said during the call, which was organized by U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski of Illinois. ‘My idea that I might retire someday is in jeopardy, and I have nowhere else to go for insurance other than the ACA.’” [BND]
Brick Williams, Cedar Hills, Utah
- “At 19, he was diagnosed with common variable immunodeficiency, or CVID, an immune disorder where low antibody levels lead to frequent infections. […] Williams has relied on twice-monthly infusions of blood plasma to bolster his immune system, but the treatments are costly, and the disorder initially made it difficult to stay on insurance because it qualified as a pre-existing condition. The plasma infusions aren’t optional for Williams, who said: ‘If I didn’t get these treatments, I would likely not live very long or be horribly sick.’”
- “‘It’s going to cost me more than my mortgage,’ Williams said. ‘As a middle-class family, you can’t survive financially when you’re paying more than a mortgage for your insurance. That’s not a survivable thing.’” [KSL-TV]
Jessica Kazaniwskyj, Illinois
- “Currently, their insurance costs them $2,000 a month. ‘We just got a letter saying it would be $4,000, yeah, would be our new premium,’ Kazaniwskyj said. ‘So that’s double, yeah, double. That’s not sustainable. That’s not sustainable for anybody.’”
- “Kazaniwskyj says if something is not done, she may be forced to drop her insurance. ‘This is a human issue. This is not a partisan issue. This is not a political issue. You are messing with people’s lives; you’re messing with people’s health,’ Kazaniwskyj said.” [ABC7]
Chenna Immel, Maine
- “She says she left her job due to her poor health and struggles to pay her current ACA rate of $25 a month. Without the credits, that number would rise to $160. ‘Now I do not know what is going to happen, and I am scared,’ she said. ‘It is only with the help of my family that I am getting all my bills paid.’ Immel says she worries about the long-term impact if the credits aren’t renewed, ‘I am worried about having to blow through my retirement, which would leave me more dependent on the system, which is not what I want to do.’” [News Center Maine]
Robin Andrews, Meriden, Connecticut
- “Robin Andrews of Meriden, who relies on ACA coverage while battling stage 4 breast cancer, said the increases are causing significant concern. ‘It’s frustrating especially when you are counting on certain medications or treatments to stay alive. It’s been pretty tough,’ Andrews said. ‘Chemo is not cheap and if they do that, I don’t know if I’m at risk of them taking it away. And if I am, I don’t know where that is going to leave me and countless others.’” [WFSB]
Cathy Rasco, Portland, Maine
- “Cathy Rasco, a Portland business owner, expects her monthly premiums to rise more than 50 percent, from $840 to more than $1,300. ‘I don’t know how I am going to pay $15,000 just in premiums,’ she said. ‘I don’t know what I am going to do. I may just not have insurance.’” [News Center Maine]
Laurel, 64, and Philip Vincenty, 62, North Carolina
- “Both Vincenty and her husband are self-employed. In 2020, she was diagnosed with breast cancer, and in 2024, Philip had a heart attack — health issues that left them with thousands of dollars in medical debt they’re still paying off. Their monthly medications cost hundreds of dollars.”
- “‘It was frustrating receiving the letter,’ she said, ‘knowing that we may lose our subsidies, that we don’t know how we’ll be able to afford our health insurance.’” [NBC]
Chelsey Baker-Hauck, Denver, Colorado
- “‘Covering $700 a month would be a hardship. A thousand dollars is almost as much as my mortgage. $1,400 is more than my mortgage. I just wanna cry, honestly,’ Baker-Hauck said. The subsidies, called enhanced premium tax credits, help her pay for a number of medications for a heart condition that arose after she developed Long COVID. She spoke as she was at the doctor’s office getting an IV infusion of immunoglobulin, a treatment she gets every two weeks to help bolster her immune system.”
- “‘I mean, I don’t know how anybody could make that work. I’ve made it work this far by borrowing from savings. Savings is now gone,’ said Baker-Hauck, who noted she and her husband are considering what to do next. ‘We have credit card debt now, which we haven’t had in 20 years. We’re talking about getting a (home equity line of credit) on our house to pay for some of this,’ she said. ‘But honestly, I don’t know how we could pay that off. So I don’t know that that’s really a viable option. I don’t know. I don’t know. I’m stuck.’” [CPR News]
Heather Slivko-Bathurst, 37, Key West, Florida
- “In Key West, Ms. Slivko-Bathurst said she and her husband pay nearly $800 a month to cover themselves and their toddler. Without the subsidies, she said, she would pay $2,000 a month. A few weeks ago, the couple started talking through the ‘what ifs’ of higher premiums. ‘Unfortunately, some of our non-negotiables are going to have to become negotiable in order for us to be able to afford anything,’ Ms. Slivko-Bathurst said.” [New York Times]
Cindy VanDerPol, Kerkhoven, Minnesota
- “Minnesota farmer Cindy VanDerPol said she went uninsured last year and saved money to afford medications and check-ups following her breast cancer treatments. Her family was able to afford subsidized health insurance this year, but she said they hoped not to use it, considering its high deductible. ‘We’re still praying I don’t get sick again,’ said VanDerPol, who owns the Pastures a Plenty farm in Kerkhoven, Minn. ‘It’s a huge source of stress and I know I’m not alone in this.’” [Star Tribune]
Julia Tilley, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
- “‘There’s really no way to prepare for it,’ Tilley said. ‘I mean, how do you suddenly come up with $15,000 more a year? My husband can’t work more because he has a head injury. I work full-time time taking care of my daughter. It’s not like I can go get another job. So we’re stuck.’”
- “Tilley said the dramatic increases will impact everyone. ‘It’s not just going to affect the people that have insurance,’ she said. ‘I mean, we’re not going to have insurance, which is going to be catastrophic. People are going to lose their homes. They’re not going to be able to afford their car payments. Already food prices are rising. So something has to give, and it’s going to be health care. People aren’t going to be able to afford it and we’re going to end up with people being sicker.’” [PennLive]