A Slow-Moving Accident: The Expiration of ACA Subsidies
Howard Yeh is a co-founder of Healthcare.com with two decades of experience building companies in healthcare, insurance, and digital distribution. More about Howard →
It's frustrating to see the expiration of enhanced ACA subsidies turn into a political football. This is one of those "slow-moving accidents" the industry saw coming. I just wish our elected officials acted earlier to prevent it.
We've all known the enhanced ACA subsidies would expire in 2025. It's been coming for years. And yet... here we are, with little clarity a few weeks ahead of the start of Open Enrollment on November 1, and millions of consumers facing massive premium increases.
The impact will be brutal for older Americans — the "pre-Medicare" crowd who earn too much to qualify for traditional subsidies, but pay the highest ACA premiums.
KFF estimates that a 60-year-old couple earning $85K would see their premiums rise $22,600 in 2026. Source: KFF.
Hopefully, policymakers find a path forward — even a phased or partial one — that gives people time to plan.
If you work in health policy, distribution, or ACA enrollment — I'd really like to hear your take. What are you seeing or preparing for?