U.S. House Approves Obamacare Subsidy Extension as Some Republicans Break With Party

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The U.S. House voted 224-202 on H.R. 1834, a Democratic bill to extend Affordable Care Act premium tax credits through 2028, with 11 Republicans joining Democrats despite party opposition. 

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The Congressional Budget Office estimates that enacting H.R.1834 would increase the number of people with health insurance by 900,000 in 2026, 3 million in 2027, 4 million in 2028, and 1.1 million in 2029, relative to current law. 

The 4 million increase in 2028 would result from changes in several types of coverage: 

  • 6.2 million more people would be enrolled through the health insurance marketplaces established by the Affordable Care Act, 
  • 0.4 million more people would be enrolled in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program combined, 
  • 0.5 million fewer people would purchase nongroup coverage outside the marketplaces, and 
  • 2.1 million fewer people would have employment-based coverage. 

Republican party leaders don’t want to extend the expensive program because it benefits insurance companies and doesn’t prevent those companies to hike premiums after it receives government subsidies. 

A Government Accountability Office report estimates that over 29,000 SSNs in plan year 2023 and nearly 68,000 SSNs in plan year 2024 were used to receive more than one year’s worth of insurance coverage in a single plan year. U.S. Rep Tom Barrett, R-Mich, voted against the bill he called a “massive giveaway to big health insurance companies.”

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President Donald Trump has previously said that he wants money to go straight to Americans instead of through health insurance companies. 

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