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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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  • Americans’ Health Priorities Diverge From Washington’s Focus on Obamacare

    From Drew Altman

    In this column for The Wall Street Journal's Think Tank, Drew Altman finds the public’s healthcare priorities have more to do with drug costs and other real world issues people deal with using the health care system than the ongoing partisan wrangling over the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

  • Poll: As Midterms Approach, Health Care Remains Voters’ Top Issue, But President Trump and Other Factors Also Loom Large

    News Release

    Most Florida Voters Favor Expanding Medicaid in their State, As Do Voters across All Non-Expansion States In an expansive look at the role issues and politics may play in the 2018 midterm elections, the latest KFF Health Tracking Poll continues to find health care as the top issue for voters, but large shares of voters also say candidate characteristics, President Trump, and party control over Congress will be major factors. In the last KFF tracking…

  • Sources of Payment for Uncompensated Care for the Uninsured

    Issue Brief

    This brief estimates the level of public funding that was paid to help offset providers’ uncompensated care costs for the uninsured in 2017. To conduct the analysis, we rely on several secondary data sources including government budget appropriations and expenditure data for major public programs that provided funds to cover the cost of care for the uninsured, as well as analyses of secondary data sources completed by others.

  • Why Drug Price Negotiation Has Staying Power

    From Drew Altman

    In this Axios column, Drew Altman looks beyond Medicare to what’s at stake for employers and workers in the debate about the government negotiating drug prices.

  • For ACA Enrollees, How Much Premiums Rise Next Year is Mostly up to Congress

    Policy Watch

    Most customers with coverage through Affordable Care Act's marketplaces will face big premium increases next year if Congress doesn’t extend the temporary enhanced tax credits included in the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021. If the outcome isn’t clear by summer, fall open enrollment could be a mess.

  • Kaiser Health Tracking Poll: September 2013

    Feature

    September 2013 Kaiser Health Tracking Poll gauges public opinion on the ACA days before open enrollment for Obamacare health insurance marketplaces begins.

  • Obamacare and You

    Fact Sheet

    Obamacare and You is a series of one-page papers explaining how the Affordable Care Act, also known as “Obamacare,” will affect different groups of people. Click on the links below to learn more: If You Are Uninsured  Haga clic para leer en español  If You Are Low-Income and May Qualify for Medicaid  Haga clic para leer en español If You Have a Pre-Existing Condition Haga clic para leer en español If You Buy Coverage in the Individual Market…