ACA Open Enrollment Reveals Drastic Increase In Monthly Premiums Nationwide

COVID-era subsidies for Affordable Care Act (ACA) insurance have been a hot-button issue in recent months. So much so that the entire federal government is shut down over the GOP’s refusal to extend them. Senate Democrats have argued that without the subsidies, millions will become uninsured in the upcoming year due to being priced out. The open enrollment period for ACA insurance began over the weekend, and the price increases have driven home exactly why the subsidies are necessary. 

According to Politico, the price increases aren’t uniform from state to state. While premiums have increased 101% in Colorado, it’s even worse in New Jersey, where that rate has increased by over 175%. The sad part is, this isn’t surprising news. There have been several reports this year detailing what would happen if the GOP allowed the subsidies to expire, and yet they still let it happen, despite Republican voters making up a large portion of those who rely on ACA insurance. 

From Politico: 

Residents of the 30 states that use the federally run HealthCare.gov will see an average 26 percent premium rise in 2026 for an average ACA plan, according to the analysis. Residents of the 20 states with their own exchanges will see an average 17 percent hike. These numbers include everyone on the exchanges.

However, that figure doesn’t reflect what a person who gets a subsidy might pay.

“There is what the insurance company charges but since nine out of 10 [ACA customers] get a subsidy they don’t pay that,” Cynthia Cox, vice president and director of KFF’s ACA program, said in an interview. “They pay a certain amount of their income.”

Without the enhanced subsidies, ACA customers will pay a lot more out of pocket.

KFF estimates that customers on HealthCare.gov and in state-run exchanges will see their monthly out-of-pocket premium payments increase by 114 percent on average. 

Even if the GOP manages to come around on extending the subsidies, it’s unclear how soon they could be implemented in the current open enrollment period, if they could even be implemented at all. If someone signed up for a more expensive plan, would the subsidies be retroactively applied? It’s almost like they should’ve just extended the subsidies ahead of time. 

Of course, that’d be too much like doing the right thing, and we all know the modern GOP is allergic to that concept. 

ABC News spoke to several people who are facing being uninsured as a result of the expiring ACA subsidies. Beth Dryer, a Virginia resident, told ABC that she knew her ACA plan would likely have a price increase, but she was shocked by how much. Her $80 monthly premium increased to $425. “I thought maybe it would double, but this is more than quadrupled in cost for me,” Dryer said. “So it’s just straight out — there’s no way I would be able to afford this next year.”

“The Republicans aren’t going to budge on the tax credits, and they’re happy to watch people die. I mean, that’s essentially what it is,” Dryer added. “You cut these tax credits, people are dying. People are already dying because they don’t have quality health care. People are already dying because they have food insecurity.”

Stacy Cox, a photographer in Utah, told ABC News that she and her husband were paying $495 for coverage this year. She received a letter in the mail informing her that if she stayed on that plan, her monthly premium would skyrocket to $2,168.68. “It’s devastating because we can’t afford that. Just that bill right there, that’s more than our mortgage, our insurance, most of our food,” Cox said. “This will devastate us if we tried to pay it.”

I get my insurance through the ACA and filled out my application this weekend when open enrollment opened. I knew I wouldn’t be able to keep my current plan because my provider is no longer offering insurance in Arizona. The ACA marketplace still showed me what a comparable plan would cost, and my monthly premium went from $40 to $400. While yes, I’m making a bit more money now than I was last year, I’m still not at what I would call the “straight balling” threshold, so that’s out of the question. 

In addition to the price increases, the site also feels less useful. I can’t pay what my current plan has increased to, but there are plans somewhat more in my price range (somewhat is doing a lot of work here, y’all). I have asthma, and my priority is largely on keeping my inhaler prescriptions reasonable. Instead of organizing the plan list by the medications I’ve input, I have to go through plan after plan to find the intersection of what I can afford and what covers my medications. I’ve used the ACA for insurance for several years, and I don’t recall it ever being this much work to find a workable plan. 

What’s truly baffling is that Trump ran on keeping prices low, yet every move made by the GOP, from tariffs, the big, beautiful bill, and now ACA subsidies, is increasing prices for people across the board. They’ve exacerbated the cost-of-living crisis to such an extent that even despite their best efforts to gerrymander the midterms, they may wind up pushing people to vote Blue. 

SEE ALSO:

Affordable Care Act Insurance Could Be 75% More Expensive Next Year

Rising Health Insurance Premiums And Expiring Subsidies Demand Action