Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Senators Buoyed By Talks On ACA But Say Solution Not Likely By End Of 2025
The Hill: Senate Health Care Talks Flicker To Life As ObamaCare Deadline Nears
A bipartisan group of senators is making a renewed push toward finding a health care solution as the hour-glass winds down to the end-of-month deadline to extend the enhanced Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies. Roughly 20 senators met Monday night at the invitation of Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), with lawmakers using a proposal from her and Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) — which includes a two-year extension of the ACA tax credits and reforms aimed at winning over conservatives — as a jumping off point. (Weaver, 12/16)
Modern Healthcare: House Bill Lets ACA Subsidies End, Eyes Association Health Plans
House Republican leaders are preparing a vote this week on a healthcare bill that lets enhanced premiums for marketplace insurance plans expire, all but guaranteeing their end. Instead, the bill aims to promote association health plans, improve transparency among pharmacy benefit managers and fund cost-sharing reductions in Affordable Care Act plans that lower benchmark premiums but raise enrollees’ cost. It also includes abortion restrictions. (McAuliff, 12/15)
Politico: House GOP Moderates Signal They’ll Fall In Line With Johnson’s Health Plan
It’s a time of choosing for a band of vulnerable House Republicans who have long warned about the expiration of key Obamacare subsidies. Speaker Mike Johnson is barreling toward a Wednesday vote on a health care bill he and other Republican leaders are presenting as an alternative to the tax credits that are set to expire at the end of the month. They have no plans to allow a vote before then on extending the subsidies. (Lee Hill and McCarthy, 12/15)
The Hill: Why Florida Is Ground Zero For Coming ObamaCare Storm
Florida will be hit harder than any other state if ObamaCare subsidies expire at the end of the year, which is looking increasingly likely as Republicans in Congress struggle to unite behind a plan to extend the tax credits. More than 1.5 million Floridians could lose health care as monthly payments skyrocket. Average premium costs could shoot up by 132 percent, or by $521 annually, for Floridians who currently receive enhanced ObamaCare subsidies, according to the Center for American Progress. (Anderson, 12/15)
KFF Health News: One Big Beautiful Bill Act Complicates State Health Care Affordability Efforts
As Congress debates whether to extend the temporary federal subsidies that have helped millions of Americans buy health coverage, a crucial underlying reality is sometimes overlooked: Those subsidies are merely a band-aid covering the often unaffordable cost of health care. California, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and five other states have set caps on health care spending in a bid to rein in the intense financial pressure felt by many families, individuals, and employers who every year face increases in premiums, deductibles, and other health-related expenses. (Wolfson, 12/16)
KFF Health News: KFF Health News’ ‘Letters To The Editor’: Readers Make Their Wish Lists, Checking Up On Health Care
More than a decade after the Affordable Care Act took effect, we’re still trapped in a confusing and costly health care maze (“Readers Take Congress to Task and Offer Their Own Health Policy Fixes,” Nov. 12). The ACA expanded coverage and protected people with preexisting conditions, but it also layered subsidies, narrow networks, and rising premiums on top of an already fragmented system. Millions still face deductibles so high that “coverage” often means financial anxiety instead of security. The problem isn’t our doctors or hospitals — it’s the structure. (12/16)
