On November 1, open enrollment begins. Because Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress ripped away health care tax credits from working families, over 20 million Americans will log onto the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace and find that their health plans are more than twice as expensive as last year. Over four million will lose coverage because these skyrocketing prices are simply unaffordable. The GOP will have no one but themselves to blame for carving out tax breaks for billionaires while putting tax relief for working families on the chopping block.
Last year, more Americans had health insurance coverage than ever before, saving millions of families from the heart-wrenching choice between taking their children to the doctor and keeping food on the table. This year, millions of Americans nationwide who buy insurance on their own have already begun to experience the Republican health care betrayal firsthand as they previewed their health insurance premiums for 2026 through their state’s online window shopping portals and HealthCare.gov. When open enrollment begins on November 1st, people in all 50 states will experience the sticker shock of the Republican health care crisis themselves:
- Premiums Will More Than Double On Average For Over 20 Million Americans, And Costs Will Be Even Higher For Rural Americans And Older Adults. Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress ripped away critical tax credits that help millions of working families afford health insurance. Without these tax credits, health care costs will more than double for over 20 million Americans, and in many cases triple and quadruple. Over 4 million Americans will find the cost too high to bear and be forced to go without health coverage. Rural Americans and older adults are especially likely to pay the price. Health care costs for rural Americans will be even 28 percent higher than those living in urban areas. A 60-year-old couple making $85,000 a year will see their annual premiums go up an average of 363 percent.
- Millions of Low-Income Americans, Mostly In Trump-Voting States, Will Go From Paying $0 A Month To Hundreds Or Thousands For Health Coverage. Last year, millions of families who were struggling to get by, making as little as $32,000 a year but not eligible for Medicaid, were able to get health insurance thanks to the enhanced premium tax credits. This year, over 10.9 million of these low-income Americans will see their premiums go from $0 a month to hundreds or thousands each month because of Trump and Republicans in Congress – a price many won’t be able to afford. 92 percent of these Americans live in states that voted for Trump and largely reside in states that refuse to expand Medicaid.
- Over 1.6 Million Middle Class Americans Will Lose Their Tax Credits Entirely. As GOP-fueled inflation and tariffs wreak havoc on the economy, millions of middle class families find themselves living paycheck to paycheck and Republicans are adding fuel to the fire by eliminating health care tax credits completely for over 1.6 million middle class Americans whose budgets are already stretched thin. Thanks to Republicans, people making as little as $62,000 a year will see their premiums go up thousands of dollars, while the GOP tax scam makes huge tax breaks for billionaires permanent. For many families, affording health care will be as difficult as paying a second mortgage.
- Families Will Have Less Help From Navigators To Find The Right Plans. The Trump administration cut nearly 90 percent of ACA Navigator funding that helps people enroll in affordable health coverage. Navigators help connect people in underserved communities to health care, ensuring that language barriers or confusing paperwork don’t stand in the way of families getting covered. When Trump cut the ACA Navigator program during his first term in office, enrollment in ACA coverage dropped by over one million people. Without this assistance, many families will have trouble choosing the right option and may not realize that the “affordable plans” on the marketplace this year will come at a much steeper price, in the form of higher deductibles and greater co-pays.
- Families Will Face Harsh And Unforgiving Penalties For Difficulties Estimating Income, Regardless Of Income Level. The vast majority of people who buy insurance on their own estimate their income for the upcoming year and receive the credit in advance to lower their monthly payments. Federal law originally capped how much individuals with incomes between 100% and 400% of the federal poverty level would have to pay back if their income ended up being higher when they filed their taxes the next year, knowing that more than one in four adults with ACA coverage or who were uninsured for at least six months had high income volatility. Many are gig workers, seasonal workers, or small business owners. Now, since Republicans are ripping away tax credits and removing the cap to this penalty, these families could face tens of thousands of dollars in unexpected tax increases as a result of their unpredictable income.
- Over 300,000 Lawful Immigrants Will Lose Affordable Health Care. Federal law already prohibits undocumented immigrants from receiving a single federal dollar from Medicaid, Medicare, or the ACA. Now, as Republicans lie about taking away health care from illegal immigrants, their GOP tax scam will rip tax credits from over 300,000 legally present immigrants, including green card holders in their first five years of residency and people with temporary protected status who are fleeing from conflicts or disasters.