(Isabelle Morales) – As the U.S. approaches nearly a month under a government shutdown, Democrats have continued to hold the country hostage until their absurd demands are met.
Thankfully, President Trump and House and Senate Republicans have remained firm in their commitment to a clean continuing resolution (CR).
Of the $1.5 trillion plan Democrats have outlined, the most expensive ($448 billion over 10 years, to be exact) is their proposal to make the expanded Obamacare subsidies – a temporary measure President Biden imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic – permanent.
Otherwise, they expire at the end of the year.
Making permanent the expanded Obamacare subsidies not only puts our country further in debt, but these federal dollars are going straight to insurance companies, not patients, who currently have little incentive to keep their costs low.
The expanded subsidies have encouraged rampant fraud and are putting taxpayers on the hook for high-income earners’ payments.
Interestingly, this debate has illuminated a broader reality: the Affordable Care Act (ACA) – or Obamacare – has been a complete failure.
The only reason Democrats assert consumers need these subsidies is because the ACA and the subsidies themselves have caused premiums to skyrocket.
Unsurprisingly, Democrats are now demanding that Republicans help them continue to hide these rising prices with subsidies.
Of course, this would incentivize insurers to keep raising premiums, costing consumers more in the long-term… but why would the Left care about worsening the problem in the future if it helps them avoid accountability now?
Republicans must let the expanded Obamacare subsidies expire. Obamacare has been a disaster – they should let Democrats own it.
Obamacare has been an utter failure.
The debate over extending the expanded Obamacare subsidies is important. However, many people are missing the forest for the trees. The only reason we are having this debate is because Obamacare failed to deliver on all its promises.
Leading up to the ACA vote, Nancy Pelosi declared, “We have to pass the bill so that you can find out what is in it.” And boy… did we find out.
President Obama and congressional Democrats made several promises regarding the ACA: that it would reduce the typical family’s premium by up to $2,500 a year, that it would increase competitiveness in the insurance market, that it would reduce the deficit, that it would boost growth and jobs, and, most famous, that if you liked your plan, you could keep it.
To be clear, this is a non-exhaustive list. For more broken promises, Paragon Health Institute has a thorough breakdown.
Not only did Obamacare not reduce premiums by $2,500 for the typical family, but it caused rates to skyrocket. Between 2013 and 2019, premiums increased by 143 percent. In the individual market, they doubled. Deductibles for ACA-compliant coverage increased by an average of 35 percent – roughly $3,600 for families.
Not only did Obamacare not increase competitiveness, but fewer insurers offer coverage on ACA exchanges than prior to the bill’s passage with fewer options for hospitals and doctors.
Not only did Obamacare not reduce the deficit, but over the next ten years the CBO predicts the cost of federal Marketplace subsidies and related programs to reach $1.32 trillion. This, of course, is a far cry from President Obama’s claim that the ACA would be “saving over $200 billion over 10 years and more than $1 trillion in the second decade.”
Not only did Obamacare not boost growth and jobs, but it disincentivized employers from expanding their workforce beyond the “50 full-time workers” threshold – a threshold that requires employers to become ACA-compliant.
The law created a major spike in firms with 25-49 people as a share of firms with 25-99 employees. Further, as Paragon Health Institute cites, one study concludes that “the ACA increased low-hours, involuntary part-time employment by 500,000-700,000 workers in retail, accommodations, and food services.”
Not only did Obamacare not let you keep the plan you liked, but it forced Americans into plans they loathed. No explanation needed. President Obama himself apologized for this lie.
Bailing out the failures of Obamacare will only exacerbate them.
Now, Republicans are being asked to bail Obamacare out – mitigate its failures by hiding its real cost from consumers.
This, of course, is a cycle that repeats itself constantly in Washington.
Government creates a high-cost program/an expansion of a program with the goal of “affordability,” thus undercutting the free market. Program fails its goal of affordability, instead drives prices higher, as companies are given free license to raise their prices because the government is subsidizing it.
Program creators insist we must, again, expand the program to address affordability in the face of higher prices.
Wash. Rinse. Repeat.
This time, to avoid, again, worsening the aforementioned failures of Obamacare, we must break the cycle. Let the expanded Obamacare subsidies expire. Stop incentivizing insurance companies to raise their prices. The reality is that insurance companies will raise their prices regardless and will, surely, find a way to blame Republicans for it.
According to insurers themselves in preliminary 2026 benchmark rate filings, only 4 percent of the 20 percent average premium increase next year is attributable to the expiration of expanded Obamacare subsidies.
Voting to expand Obamacare will not “save” Republicans in the midterms – instead, it will alienate their base.
To take the media’s political advice, as a Republican, is to err.
Expanding Obamacare is not a “political win” for Republicans. It is a betrayal to their moderate and conservative base alike. At the very least, Democrats will never give a Republican who caves credit for doing so – it will always be framed as a win for the Left.
Longtime GOP voters, however, would have every reason to lose faith in a member who betrays something as foundational as not taking steps toward a socialist healthcare system.
Anyways, is there actually strong evidence that letting these subsidies expire is as unpopular as the media would have you believe? After all, over 60 percent of Americans have little to no awareness of the issue at hand.
Additionally, only around 6 percent of the U.S. population may find themselves affected by the expiration of these subsidies. Further, when the policy is actually explained to voters, as in one poll conducted by Public Opinion Strategies, 53 percent of Americans say the enhanced subsidies should be left to expire.
For eight years, Republicans ran (hardcore) on repealing Obamacare. During that time, the party held historically high majorities.
Instead of folding on the issue, conservatives must prioritize, once again, making the anti-Obamacare argument to voters. It has been a long time since the failures of the ACA were illuminated. Now that they are front and center, voters deserve to be told the truth.
The aftermath of Obamacare is a crime scene. No Republican should leave their fingerprints behind.
Isabelle Morales is the Federal Affairs Manager at Americans for Tax Reform (ATR), where she focuses on tax, spending, and regulatory policy. The opinions expressed by contributors are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Nevada News & Views.
