Amidst Government Shutdown, Millions of Hardworking Americans & Families Face a Looming Health Care Tax Hike

With Open Enrollment Beginning November 1, GOP Lawmakers Remain Focused on Protecting Over 24 Million Americans from Skyrocketing Premiums

Conservative leaders have highlighted the critical urgency to avert a looming health care tax hike for millions of Americans and their willingness to work across party lines, once the government reopens, to advance sensible solutions to keep health coverage affordable for working families. These tax credits make health insurance more accessible for families and individuals who purchase their own coverage through the individual marketplace. With open enrollment beginning November 1, Congress must act now, or premiums will soar, forcing many middle-class Americans and small business owners to lose coverage altogether.

As Washington continues to work through budget discussions, GOP lawmakers are underscoring the importance for Democrats to come to the table and reopen the government so Congress can work together to extend these critical tax credits as soon as possible. Doing so would deliver much needed stability and certainty for families ahead of open enrollment and demonstrate that Republicans are committed to keeping health care affordable for working Americans. Longtime Trump pollster John McLaughlin warns that failure to do so could be a “potential catastrophe for the GOP.”

 President Trump and the White House want to work with Congress to protect Americans from higher health care costs.

 President Donald Trump, The White House:

“We have a negotiation going on with the Democrats that could lead to good things, and I’m talking about good things with regard to health care…If we made the right deal, I’d make a deal.”

 Conservative lawmakers understand hardworking Americans cannot afford higher premiums and more out-of-pocket costs.

 Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA), Punchbowl News:

 “I understand the political realities and the realities of people on the ground. I mean, this is real to folks.”

 Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), PBS News:

“I think we all want to do what we can to lower health care costs to make health care more accessible and more affordable. […] As I said, we are willing to have that conversation.”

Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), CNN:

“This cliff is coming for millions and millions of Americans, where their health insurance premiums are about to skyrocket, so put your money where your mouth is.” 

“I’m getting phone calls from people that are saying if the ACA tax credits expire, they aren’t gonna be able to have health insurance. They’re going to have to drop it.”

Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), X:

“When the tax credits expire this year, my own adult children’s insurance premiums for 2026 are going to DOUBLE, along with all the wonderful families and hard-working people in my district.”

 Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), Punchbowl News:

 “There are many of us who want to see an extension of the tax credits so that they don’t expire but want to see reforms as well so that people who have household incomes of over $200,000 a year, for example, should not qualify, in my view, for the subsidy.”

 Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), Reuters:

“We’ve got to make sure that premiums don’t go sky-high.”

Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Alaska Public Media:

“I have suggested that we need to avoid this cliff, which is coming at the end of this year. And it will be a cliff that results in real costs to Alaskans. And I do not take that lightly at all. So, what I’m trying to do is suggest that we can look at this and work towards some reforms.”

Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO), The Hill:

“We can’t just allow the credits to expire and allow people’s premiums to double. I mean, it’s like over 400,000 people in Missouri.”

Representative Carlos Giménez (R-FL), The Washington Post:

“[Extension would mean] providing critical relief and ensuring millions of families can keep their coverage without facing massive cost increases.”

Trump Campaign Pollster John McLaughlin has warned that failure by Congress to act will cost hardworking Americans their coverage and potentially cost Republicans their congressional majorities.

John McLaughlin, The Scott Jennings Show:

“These are health care tax credits. Tax credits to buy health care for working people. These are not people on welfare. These are not people who are getting Medicaid. These are people who are buying health care insurance on their own that need the tax credits to help pay for it, and we need to change the language and let them know that the Republican Party stands for health care tax credits to make sure that working Americans have health insurance coverage.”

GOP lawmakers acknowledge a bipartisan solution is needed to extend the tax credits and protect Americans from rising costs.

Senator Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Alaska Beacon:

“I do think there’s bipartisan support to get this done. We’ve just got to power through these different issues.”

Senator Roger Marshall (R-KS), Axios:

“I think that there’s a significant number of us who would say, look, it was a COVID measure only, and it’s time to end that. There’s going to be a number of us as well that want to extend probably all of it.”