WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — The reality that Congress will not renew health care subsidies to start 2026 is now setting in for many who rely on them for health insurance.
"I feel like it was expected, unfortunately, but it was definitely still disappointing," said Lauren Koff, who is self-employed and has health insurance through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to manage a chronic health condition.
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"I dropped down on my coverage, I went from a gold tier plan to a bronze plan, all of my costs and all of my co-pays will be going up," Koff said.
She still isn't sure exactly what her new premium will be, but she expects it to rise from the current $244 a month to somewhere between $500 and $700 without the government subsidies.
"The worst of all is taking the risk if I end up in the hospital, there will be a $3,000 a day co-pay," she said. "And they say it's a maximum of two days, only $6,000. It's a crazy, daunting amount of money."
Over 24 million people are estimated to be enrolled this year in the ACA, with over four million in Florida.
"On average nationwide, we expect people to see their monthly premium payments increase 114% or a $1,000 annually," said Matt McGough with KFF, a nonprofit, nonpartisan health policy organization.
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McGough said about half of those people are small business owners, small business workers, gig workers and the self-employed.
"People who are 50 plus on the marketplaces who are not yet qualifying for Medicare, they could see how much they pay on an annual basis towards their premium increase upwards of $10,000," McGough said.
Currently, the ACA is in open enrollment with a deadline of Dec. 15 to have coverage by Jan. 1, and Jan 15 to secure health insurance for 2026 starting in February.
"I don't know how to continue to live here beyond the next year if health care costs continue to rise," Koff said. "That's just a reality."
