New Report Undermines Democrats ‘Affordable Care’ Shutdown Spin On Obamacare Subsidies

A new report reveals how much Obamacare subsidies at the heart of Democrat shutdown demands have distorted the healthcare market — and warns the effects would continue if Democrats get their way.

For over a month, Democrats have repeatedly blocked Republicans’ funding measure to reopen the government, demanding the extension of COVID-era Obamacare premium subsidies set to expire at the end of 2025. They warn that allowing the subsidies to lapse would cause a catastrophic increase in healthcare costs, accusing Republicans of trying to “gut the healthcare of everyday Americans.”

However, a new report from the conservative Paragon Health Institute argues that these enhanced Obamacare subsidies punish work, disadvantage those with employer-provided insurance, and push employers to drop coverage altogether.

Obamacare, formally known as the Affordable Care Act, established premium tax credits to help people purchase insurance on public exchanges if they lacked other coverage. Initially, these subsidies were limited to households earning 100% to 400% of the federal poverty level.

However, former President Joe Biden expanded these subsidies through the American Rescue Plan and the Inflation Reduction Act, eliminating the income cap and increasing government contributions, and in some cases, reducing certain households’ premiums to zero. Democrats passed the subsidy expansions without a single Republican vote, setting them to expire at the end of 2025. Now, they blame Republicans for the impending premium hikes tied to the expiration schedule Democrats themselves enacted.