Killing off OBAMA care: GOP's stubborn subversion plan: remove subsidies

Update 11/10/2025: The vote yesterday, with the assistance of 8 Democratic senators who broke ranks, has some logic, but it also left Democrats without any leverage to secure funding for Obamacare next year. (Clearly, the GOP was not going to cave on Obamacare, so throw in the towel before people are hurt even more by the shutdown and Dems get the blame; quit while we are ahead) However, Democrats may have lost the battle, but they have a great chance to win the war. Democrats have at least laid the groundwork for a winning message in 2026.. making it clear who is responsible for destroying the only plan that makes affording insurance possible for those not covered by Medicare, Medicaid, or employers' insurance. The GOP has no plan...and their vote at least will be clearly recorded (in December on Obamacare subsidies), if the GOP leadership permits it, (no guarantees, there), leaving even more certainty that the GOP does not care a fig about their well-being.

Why the GOP is so obsessed with depriving needy people of access to health care is beyond me.. I have thought that the best thing that could happen politically for Democrats in 2026 is for each GOP Congressperson to be on the record with their vote on this issue in December. The "deal" struck by the eight Democrats to end the shutdown did not guarantee a vote on the ACA would even be taken. (Update: Speaker Johnson confirmed that in comments 11/10/2025; no guarantee there will be a vote) The pain caused by those hurt will be real and palpable, and angering. The tragedy will be that those needing health care will either go bankrupt or suffer if they are hit by a health crisis because they are insurance-naked until the Democrats take over the House and Senate in 2026. That the GOP also heartlessly used Snap as a political chip and the suffering of public employees not being paid, just adds to their reputation as cruel in their pursuit of favoring the rich.

The concepts floating out there in December will be Medicare for All (my choice), high risk pools (never worked where it has been tried) and bribing voters with money up to $2k in a useless health savings plan that does not cover anyone with a catastrophic illness or insurance price hikes on those with pre-exisitng condiitons, or just put it in their bank accounts to spend on whatever. (Trump's idea): pay more get less.MUFTIC FORUM BLOG: Trump's new concept for health care insurance. Pay retail and get less for your money..

The ACA was designed to do the major things: cover the afforbility gap for those who did not get insurance from employers, Medicare, Medicaid, but the cost of private insurance was too high for their income level (subsidies are based on income level), to spread risk around (the pool) so those with pre existing conditions could get insurance they could afford; and provide affordable access to preventative care and early diagnosis

So if you have sticker shock when you find out what the GOP has done to their health insurance affordability in 2026, and are thinking of going insurance naked until and if subsidies are restored. If so, get your annual physical before the first of the year, and mammograms and other expensive preventive measures before then, too. Likewise, move up any surgeries you can. I you have pre-existing conditions, lots of luck in finding anything you can afford. At least if you can get catastrophic insurance, do...and be prepared for humongous deductibles if anything major arises.. Got any young adult kids on your AKA insurance? Tough luck, kids. This is what going naked without AKA insurance means because you cannot afford the premiums. If you live in a rural area, pray your nearest ER is not shuttered. Also, be prepared to pay the ER charges for a visit. If you get put in the hospital, best of luck on paying off the bills.

Continuing with original post:

Those killing off Obamacare are from those states that need it the most. These GOP-controlled states ought to look after improving the health of their citizens, and instead, they are making access to good health care even more unaffordable. This map is damning: those with the worst life expectancy are mostly red states.

[OC] U.S. States by Life Expectancy at Birth in 2018-2021 : r/dataisbeautiful

The stubbornness of Trump and the GOP refusing to reverse themselves on Obamacare subsidies is puzzling, unless you view it in some context. Ever since John McCain blocked its death, the GOP has been trying to kill it off in some other way. They have found it: remove its subsidies so that it is unaffordable to anyone who is not wealthy. It is a mantra and it is very popular.ACA marketplace premiums are set to rise sharply in 2026—with median filings showing increases of ~15–18%, the highest since 2018. The victims are predominantly those who can no longer afford preventative care and even visiting a doctor when diseases are or could be diagnosed and treated can cause going bankrupt. The irony is that those states (NM excepted) with the lowest life expectancy are glaringly obvious: mostly red states: l. The GOP may think they are killing off hated socialized medicine and protecting big pharma and big insurers, but what they are doing is killing off more of their own constituents who need affordable health care, not less..

MUFTIC FORUM BLOG: The Democrats' making healthcare the issue in the shutdown may have unintended consequences

The ACA is not the best system for providing subsidies for health care access, but it is the only one we have, and there is no concept of a plan on the GOP's list of concerns or agenda. What this strategy of killing it off by removing subsidies is doing, making even their core supporters suffer, will eventually lead to desperation by their own voters and lead to what the GOP dreads most: Medicare for All. That or something similar can cut out the middlemen, share costs with the largest base of participants, and force big pharma to compete for business through a government process for all health care, depending on the details of the Medicare for All system. Obamacare (ACA) has filled in the gap between Medicaid and employer-provided insurance and made it possible for the self-employed to get insurance subsidized based on income and ability to pay.

However, this is not evidence that the Affordable Care Act “is failing.”

The data show that these increases stem primarily from rising medical costs, Republican-driven policy instability, and state-level refusal to expand Medicaid—not the ACA’s design..Following the map graphic are footnote data sources used for this conclusion.

reddit.com

From the dataisbeautiful community on Reddit: [OC] U.S. States by Life Expectancy at Birth in 2018-2021

Explore this post and more from the dataisbeautiful comm

1. Premiums are rising because Republicans destabilized the market.
• Repeated repeal attempts, litigation, and the 2017 termination of cost-sharing reduction payments drove insurers to hedge by hiking rates.
• Source: CBO / Wikipedia summary of CSR payment termination
2. Republican-led states blocked Medicaid expansion, raising costs for everyone.
• Non-expansion states now show 7 % higher ACA premiums on average and significantly worse uninsured rates.
• Sources: KFF—Status of State Medicaid Expansion Decisions; CBPP—Medicaid Expansion FAQs
3. Corporate favoritism worsened cost inflation.
• GOP opposition to drug-price negotiation and weak antitrust enforcement allowed pharma and hospital monopolies to raise costs unchecked.
• Source: Verywell Health—Why Health Insurance Costs Are Rising
4. Democrats stabilized and expanded coverage.
• Under Democratic leadership, subsidies were enhanced and coverage expanded to record levels, even as the GOP blocked long-term fixes.
• Sources: KFF—ACA Premiums Up 18 % in 2026; Health System Tracker—Drivers of 2026 Premium Hikes

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• “Premiums aren’t going up because of Obamacare — they’re going up because Republicans never stopped trying to break it.”
• “In states where Republican leaders blocked Medicaid expansion, working families pay more for coverage.”
• “When Republicans side with Big Pharma and hospital monopolies, middle-class Americans pay the price.”

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1. KFF: Why ACA Premiums Are Rising in 2026 (Aug 2025)
2. KFF: Preliminary Rate Filings Show Largest Increases Since 2018
3. AJMC: ACA Premiums Up 26 % Before Subsidy Expiration
4. CBPP: Medicaid Expansion & Coverage Gaps
5. HealthCare Dive: ACA Plans Could Spike in 2026