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Affordable Care Act

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Did the Affordable Care Act Make Health Care More Affordable?

The expiration of the ACA’s enhanced premium tax credits at the start of 2026, combined with rising insurer premiums, put a spotlight on health care affordability that extends beyond Marketplace enrollees. KFF’s Cynthia Cox examines the ACA’s record and the broader underlying question it raises: what’s a fair price for Americans people to pay for health care?

The ACA MarketplaceS

In Preliminary Rate Filings, ACA Marketplace Insurers Largely Propose Double-Digit Premium Increase For 2027, Following a Steep Climb This Year 

ACA Marketplace insurers are proposing a median premium increase of 14% for 2027— indicating a likely second consecutive year of double-digit increases, according to a new analysis of preliminary rate filings in 16 states and DC. If these increases hold, typical premiums for insurers participating in the ACA Marketplaces would jump by more than one-third between 2025 and 2027.

The Average Marketplace Deductible Grew by About $1,000 Per Person in 2026, With More Enrollees Shifting to Higher-Deductible Plans as Enhanced Tax Credits Expired

The average Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace deductible experienced the steepest increase in history—growing by 37% or over $1,000, from $2,759 in 2025 to $3,786 in 2026 as enhanced premium tax credits expired, according to a new KFF analysis. After the enhanced tax credits ended, many Marketplace shoppers shifted toward lower-premium, higher-deductible plans.

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  • The Digital Divide And Access To Health Information Online

    Poll Finding

    The Affordable Care Act (ACA) calls for a number of web-based initiatives, including development of the website healthcare.gov which provides a variety of health information and helps individuals find coverage options. Therefore, understanding the level and quality of Internet access among those groups most likely to benefit from reform, such as the uninsured, those with lower incomes, and members of racial and ethnic minority groups, is an important consideration as health reform is implemented. A…

  • ¿Hay alguna razón por la que el mercado no ajustaría y continuaría automáticamente mi subsidio para la prima al momento de la renovación?

    FAQs

    Si vive en un estado que utiliza cuidadodesalud.gov , cuando solicitó cobertura por primera vez, tuvo la oportunidad de autorizar al mercado a consultar sus datos de ingresos en línea, incluyendo sus declaraciones de impuestos, durante 1 a 5 años. Si no lo autorizó, su asistencia financiera NO se renovará automáticamente para el próximo año, y debe volver a aplicar. Si vive en un estado que opera su propio mercado de seguros, el proceso para…

  • What kinds of health insurance plans do private enrollment websites sell?

    FAQs

    Private enrollment websites that are run by insurance companies typically only show plans offered by that insurer. Websites run by insurance brokers are required to show all plans offered by multiple insurers. If you have questions or concerns about information on these sites, contact the Marketplace call center, HealthCare.gov, or your state Marketplace. Many private enrollment websites also sell short-term health plans, cancer-only policies, and other less comprehensive products. These products may appear cheaper than…

  • How is the Affordable Care Act Leading to Changes in Medicaid Today? State Responses to Five New Options

    Issue Brief

    This policy brief examines how states in every region have responded to five key opportunities available under the health reform law to help them prepare for the significant expansion of Medicaid in 2014. The options covered in the brief include incentives for states to get an early start on the Medicaid coverage expansion; increased federal funding to upgrade Medicaid eligibility systems; money to improve care for beneficiaries with chronic conditions by providing "health home" services;…

  • The Role of Medicaid for Adults With Chronic Illnesses

    Fact Sheet

    This report and related fact sheets provide data on spending, utilization, and access to care among low-income nonelderly adult Medicaid beneficiaries with chronic illnesses. Four fact sheets provide detail for beneficiaries with diabetes, respiratory disease, cardiovascular disease, and behavioral health conditions The reports show that, despite relatively high prevalence of chronic conditions and, correspondingly, relatively high spending and utilization rates, Medicaid beneficiaries with chronic illness report better access to care than their uninsured counterparts, many…

  • Summary of Coverage Provisions in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

    Issue Brief

    This short summary describes the health coverage provisions contained in the final version of the Affordable Care Act signed into law in March 2010, including the individual mandate requirements, expansion of public programs, health insurance exchanges, changes to private insurance and employer requirements.

  • Toplines: Kaiser Health Tracking Poll — November 2009

    Poll Finding

    This document contains the toplines from the November Health Tracking Poll. The survey was designed and analyzed by public opinion researchers at the Kaiser Family Foundation and was conducted November 5 through November 12, 2009, among a nationally representative random sample of 1,203 adults ages 18 and older. Telephone interviews conducted by landline (802) and cell phone (401, including 112 who had no landline telephone) were carried out in English and Spanish. The margin of…

  • Pulling it Together: Health Reform’s Six-Month Checkup

    Perspective

    Six months after its enactment, there are two totally different stories to tell about the health-reform law. The public remains split on the law largely along traditional partisan lines. Confusion and misperception are rampant, with more than a third of seniors still thinking the law contains "death panels" (it does not). Yet beneath the political battle lies a success story of early implementation: The federal government that many regard as sluggish and ineffective has turned…

  • Physician Willingness and Resources to Serve More Medicaid Patients: Perspectives from Primary Care Physicians

    Issue Brief

    This issue brief attempts to assess how primary care physicians will respond to the entry of 32 million newly insured people into the health care system under health reform. The increase in the number of people with health coverage is expected to intensify competition among patients and payers for primary care resources. The brief analyzes data from a nationally representative survey of physicians to assess which adult-care primary care physicians are most likely to respond…