As the new year rings in, more than 20 million Americans are facing much higher health insurance costs, including nearly 500,000 Michiganders enrolled in marketplace plans.
Health care advocates say insurance premiums are expected to double or even triple for some.
The increase comes after enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits expired at midnight on New Year’s Eve.
Amber Bellazaire, senior policy analyst for the Michigan League for Public Policy, said the tax credits have served families in the state.
"In terms of increasing access to affordable health coverage that really protects families’ financial security and helps to promote regular access to care," Bellazaire pointed out. "Which we know ultimately improves healthy communities across the board."
Republicans in Congress who support ending the credits said extending them would have added significant federal costs and argued the subsidies distorted the insurance market.
They say long-term affordability should be addressed through cost controls and market-based changes.
Advocates said the loss of the tax credits could ripple well beyond the new year, affecting access to care and the management of household budgets.
Still, Bellazaire is holding out hope lawmakers could revisit the issue, even after the credits have expired.
"We are encouraged that a discharge petition in the U.S. House had reached that threshold of 218 votes," Bellazaire emphasized. "There is a possibility that there will be a vote, kind of mid-to-late January."
Insurance navigators across Michigan are urging residents to review their coverage since the credits have expired, reminding people open enrollment for individual plans runs through January 15.
