Overview
- Insurers have filed 2026 rate hikes averaging 26% overall, roughly 30% in HealthCare.gov states and 17% on state-run marketplaces, according to KFF analyses.
- Enhanced premium tax credits introduced in 2021 are set to lapse after Dec. 31, 2025, and KFF estimates subsidized enrollees would face average premium increases of about 114% without an extension.
- About 24 million people are enrolled in marketplace plans and roughly 22 million receive the tax credits now at the center of the standoff.
- States including Maryland and California say they can quickly recalculate premiums and apply new subsidies if Congress acts, with system updates taking about a week and consumer notices taking longer.
- As the shutdown hits day 30, Democrats tie reopening the government to extending the credits, Republicans seek a separate vote, Trump urges scrapping the Senate filibuster, unions press USDA to deploy $5 billion in SNAP contingency funds, and the White House budget office plans to pay military members using available funds.