Five million Americans dropped ACA marketplace coverage after GOP let enhanced subsidies expire
HHS effectuated data shows 19.2 million enrolled in February, down from a record 24.2 million at the 2025 peak; premiums doubled on average when pandemic-era tax credits lapsed, and 4 million stopped paying
أضف إلى قائمة
لا قوائم بعد.
Summary
The US Department of Health and Human Services released June 26 effectuated enrollment data showing 19.2 million Americans remained in Affordable Care Act marketplace plans as of February 2026, down from 23.1 million in January and off a record 24.2 million peak in 2025. More than 1 million fewer people enrolled for 2026 at the start of open enrollment, and a further 4 million either cancelled or stopped paying premiums. The direct cause: average premiums roughly doubled when enhanced premium tax credits, first introduced during the pandemic, lapsed after Republicans declined to extend them and a Democratic-backed government shutdown in October 2025 failed to restore them.
Why it matters
The 5-million drop is the largest single-year decline in ACA marketplace enrollment since the law's 2014 launch. Economists warn that as younger, healthier enrollees leave, the risk pool skews older and sicker, pushing premiums higher still for those who remain.
What to watch
- Whether Congress moves a subsidies restoration package before the next open enrollment period in November.
- Year-end effectuated data, likely to show the full drop exceeding February figures as 90-day grace periods expire.
- State-level uninsured rate data expected from CDC surveys later in 2026.