House minority leader pushes for extension of healthcare tax credit during visit to Washington

The top Democrat in the U.S. House of Representatives was in Washington on Friday to push for Congress to extend health care tax credits that are set to expire at the end of the year.

Without that, House Minority leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-NY, warned during a news conference in Bellevue that “tens of millions of Americans” are likely to face “dramatic increases in their health care premiums, copays and deductibles.”

Currently, 286,000 Washingtonians are enrolled in private health care plans through the Health Benefit exchange. According to Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson, the expiration of the Enhanced Premium Tax Credits could result in 80,000 Washingtonians being priced out of the health care exchange.

The expiration of the credits could cost Washingtonians approximately $285 million, Ferguson said.

“If these credits go away, so will their health care plan. For the others who manage to keep health coverage, those Washingtonians will see their costs skyrocket effective Jan. 1,” Ferguson said. “We’re going to have some big challenges as a state to grapple with the impacts of this if it goes forward, but right now, we need to be clear in our objection to this, to communicate to the American people what’s at stake, and what this means for them.”

Washington Insurance Commissioner Patty Kuderer said this week both plans purchased on the Health Benefit exchange and employer-provided insurance will become more expensive next year.

According to the Office of the Insurance Commissioner, those using the exchange will see an average 21% insurance rate hike in 2026.

“These increases are not just happening in Washington. Across the country, proposed rate increases are in line with what we’re seeing here,” Kuderer said Friday.

If the premium tax credits are renewed, the Office of the Insurance Commissioner estimated this week that the 21% rate increase would be 4-6% lower.