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Washington, D.C. – Today, Protect Our Care is releasing a new report highlighting declining Affordable Care Act (ACA) enrollment following Trump and Republicans’ decision to take away the ACA tax credits that nearly 22 million hard-working Americans across the country relied on to afford health care. Today marks the final day to enroll in 2026 ACA plans as the final state marketplace in Washington, D.C., closes, but the pain of the GOP war on health care is just beginning for working families across the nation. With data from all 50 states, this new report details the over 1 million Americans, like Lenny and Mandee Wilson in West Virginia and Teresa Acosta in Georgia, who have already dropped coverage since the GOP health care cuts hit in January. Millions more may soon follow suit unless Republicans end their war on health care and restore the premium tax credits they ripped away from working families.
“When Trump and his cronies in Congress decided to rip away these lifeline tax credits, they told millions of working families across this country that the Republican Party doesn’t care if they live or die,” said Protect Our Care President Brad Woodhouse. “These GOP health care premium hikes put millions of Americans’ lives at risk. If you’re one of the almost 22 million people whose premiums Republicans just jacked up, you’re probably paying way too much for a plan that’s less comprehensive than what you had last year — or you’ve dropped coverage entirely. And we all know what happens when you have a high deductible or go uninsured: you ration care. Put off preventative appointments. Skip screenings that could catch cancer early enough to treat it. End up in the emergency room with life-threatening pneumonia that could’ve been avoided if only you could have gotten the right care when it was just a cough. It’s no way to live. But what other choice do working families have in Donald Trump’s America?”
By the Numbers
This open enrollment, GOP premium hikes:
- Doubled and tripled premiums for over 20 million hardworking Americans, including small business owners, farmers, and older adults.
- Put health care out of reach for over one million Americans, who can no longer afford to see a doctor and will face huge debt if they have a heart attack or accident.
- Will lead to an estimated 5 million Americans losing their health care after they are unable to pay their premiums and are kicked off their coverage.
- Forced middle-class families to pay $20 billion in higher health care costs in 2026, while CEOs and yacht owners pocket $120 billion in tax breaks from the GOP tax scam.
- Forced an estimated one in three Americans who buy health care on their own to reduce their coverage and pay thousands more each year in health care costs.
- Pressured countless families to cut back on food, clothing, and other basics to afford health insurance and greater out-of-pocket costs.