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The COVID-19 pandemic significantly strained our health care system and had an oversized impact on Americans who do not have affordable, accessible care. Last year, Congress responded to this once-in-a-generation crisis with a historic piece of legislation known as the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). This relief package brought much-needed funding to hospitals, expanded telehealth services, and provided new and more generous premium subsidies for those who purchase coverage through the federal and state-based marketplaces.
This increased financial relief was an important part of our pandemic response, but the positive and continued impact of these benefits has been far greater. A record-breaking 14.5 million Americans enrolled in marketplace coverage for 2022, with nearly 6 million of them gaining coverage for the first time because of this new federal program. In New Hampshire, more than 52,000 Granite Staters are benefiting from cost-saving premium subsidies, including nearly 23,000 residents who were previously uninsured.
These expanded tax credits will continue to help reduce the number of uninsured Americans and lower out-of-pocket costs for millions — but only if Congress acts soon to make the subsidies permanent before they expire at the end of this year. If this doesn’t happen, too many Americans will struggle once more with access to affordable care.
In fact, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently released an urgent update outlining the impact of expired health insurance subsidies. It states that “the number of uninsured Americans will increase significantly,” with “approximately 3 million Americans” at risk of losing their health insurance. We must avoid going down this road at all costs. Americans’ health care is at stake, and we need our lawmakers to take action.
If Congress allows this program to end, millions of Americans will see their premiums rise by an average of $50 per month, or $600 per year. Others could be priced out of insurance altogether. According to a report from Families USA, the average New Hampshire enrollee would see their premiums increase by 28% without the current subsidies. Thousands of Granite Staters have been fighting throughout the pandemic to manage their health care needs, and now with cases again spiking in some communities, it is not the time to lose focus on health care affordability. Subsidies bring health care costs down for millions of Americans, and we must preserve this affordable access permanently.
Higher premiums will inevitably lead to Americans opting to forgo doctor’s visits or medical treatment to the detriment of their health. The lowest-income beneficiaries – those who earn between 1 and 1.5 times the poverty level and make up 42% of marketplace enrollees – would face the greatest risk of losing coverage. No American should have to choose between getting the care they need and putting food on the table, especially as daily expenses are on the rise amid record inflation. Unfortunately, this could be the reality for countless families if the program expires.
As former speaker of the New Hampshire House of Representatives, it was a top priority of mine to make health care more affordable and accessible, and I am proud of the progress we have made – from expanding Medicaid to more than 50,000 low-income residents to protecting access to reproductive care. The current subsidies that were expanded in ARPA built on these gains, and this year’s marketplace enrollment in New Hampshire jumped up 12 percent once ARPA was passed. Now we need Sens. Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen to make the subsidies permanent, or we risk jeopardizing affordable health care for many of our Granite State neighbors.
Our senators have been strong advocates for affordable health care. Just last week, Sen. Shaheen called on congressional leaders to prioritize making these subsidies permanent. It’s time for other congressional leaders in the Senate to heed this same call and prioritize efforts to make health insurance subsidies permanent before the summer recess. Failure to take decisive action would not only hamper our ability to recover from the impacts of the pandemic and the resulting economic challenges, but it would unfairly leave American families on the hook to pay more for their health care coverage. Let’s do what’s right for our communities and preserve affordable, quality care through permanent health insurance tax credits.
Terie Norelli, a Portsmouth Democrat, is a former speaker of the New Hampshire House of Representatives.
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