Frustration among Democrats on Capitol Hill is mounting after eight moderate senators broke ranks to support a Republican-led bill aimed at reopening the government without concessions on expiring health care subsidies.
The measure — a short-term funding bill — passed despite Democratic demands for an extension of Affordable Care Act tax credits to prevent steep health insurance cost increases next year.
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Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who opposed the bill, urged Democrats to “not give up the fight.” But his inability to stop eight members of his own party from backing the measure has fueled discontent within Democratic ranks.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries is pressing Democrats in his chamber not to vote to advance the bill. He warned that the ACA subsidies, set to expire at the end of this year, now appear certain to lapse.
According to the nonpartisan health care policy foundation KFF, insurers are expected to raise premiums by an estimated 26% once the subsidies expire. No legislative fix appears imminent.
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Senate Majority Leader John Thune has pledged to hold a vote on extending the ACA tax credits. But Democrats call that promise meaningless, saying they expect no Republican support. Many GOP lawmakers have criticized the subsidies, which were created in 2021 under then-President Biden’s American Rescue Plan and later extended under the Inflation Reduction Act.
While Democrats lost the fight to include the subsidies in the funding bill, they gained an issue for the 2026 midterm elections. Health care is likely to be a central theme as they aim to regain control of Congress.
