U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) joined a group of his Senate colleagues in urging Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (CA-12) to prioritize making the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) enhanced premium tax credits permanent in any upcoming reconciliation legislation.
Without an extension, these credits – which have lowered costs and expanded access to health care for millions of Americans – are set to expire at the end of the year. Peters helped pass the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) into law last year, which included premium tax credit provisions to make coverage more affordable for Michiganders.
“Americans deserve a stable health care market that provides access to high-quality care coverage for all, and American Rescue Plan Act’s (ARPA) enhanced premium tax credits must be extended to ensure that we can maintain our progress on closing the coverage gap. Failure to do so will leave millions with increased costs for vital health insurance, undoing Democrats’ progress in ensuring that every American has access to affordable, meaningful coverage,” Peters and the Senators wrote.
“Health care costs continue to rise, and we must ensure affordable, quality health coverage remains in reach,” the Senators continued. “ARPA improved coverage affordability and if these subsidies are not extended premium payments will rise sharply for nearly all marketplace enrollees. We must not lose momentum in our work to close the coverage gap.
“As you continue your ongoing work to negotiate a reconciliation package, we urge to make permanent the vital ARPA enhanced premium tax credits.”
The lawmakers underscored how critical 2022 has been for the ACA, with a record 14.5 million Americans signed up for Marketplace plans. Of those 14.5 million, 13 million Americans received subsidies that helped low- and middle-income individuals and families purchase previously unaffordable coverage. It also eliminated premiums for those making 150 percent of the federal poverty level and guaranteed comprehensive coverage costs no more than 8.5 percent of a family’s income. Millions of those Marketplace enrollees are benefiting from enhanced premium tax credits passed by Congress as part of the ARPA, which have cut premiums in half for many beneficiaries. This year, four out of five enrollees have been able to find a plan for $10 or less per month, and families are saving an average of $2,400 on their annual premiums.
The full letter can be found at this link.
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