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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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  • My employer doesn’t offer health insurance. Can I buy a plan on the Marketplace and qualify for financial assistance?

    FAQs

    Yes, if your employer does not offer you health insurance, you can shop for a plan on the Marketplace instead. The annual Open Enrollment period to sign up for coverage runs from November 1 to January 15 in most states. Depending on your income and household information, you may qualify for premium tax credits and cost-sharing reductions to help offset your costs. If your income is very low, the Marketplace will also help determine if…

  • I don’t have a checking account. Can the insurance company require that I get one and pay my premiums through automatic monthly withdrawals?

    FAQs

    No. Insurers offering coverage in the Marketplace are required to provide a variety of payment methods and cannot require a consumer to pay by automatic bank withdrawals (sometimes called electronic funds transfers, or EFT) or debit card. Federal rules require the insurer to also accept paper checks, cashier’s checks, money orders, and general-purpose pre-paid debit cards. These methods must be available to consumers for both the initial premium payment (at enrollment) and ongoing payments.

  • An image of text is an excerpt from Jennifer Tolbert's quick take which reads, "While a temporary period of allowing people to self-attest to their compliance with work requirements will ease the effects for some, the more restrictive definition of medical frailty adopted by the Trump Administration will be challenging for states to implement and could lead to more people falling through the cracks and losing coverage."

    CMS Requires More Restrictive Definition of Medical Frailty in New Medicaid Work Requirements Rule

    Quick Insights

    On June 1, 2026, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued an interim final rule on Medicaid work requirements that adopts a restrictive definition of medical frailty—differing from states’ early expectations. The more restrictive definition of medical frailty adopted by the Trump Administration will be challenging for states to implement and could lead to more people falling through the cracks and losing coverage.

  • Veo “planes catastróficos” que parecen incluso más económicos que otros planes del mercado. ¿Qué son? ¿Puedo comprar uno?

    FAQs

    Los planes catastróficos tienen los costos compartidos más altos y las primas más bajas. En 2026, los planes catastróficos tendrán un deducible anual de $10.600 para una persona o $21.200 para una familia. El plan no tiene que cubrir más de tres consultas de atención primaria antes de alcanzar el deducible. Los planes catastróficos solo se pueden vender a ciertas personas. Consulte estas preguntas frecuentes para obtener más información. Tenga en cuenta que si es…

  • ¿Qué sucede si recibo atención de un médico que no está en la red de mi plan?

    FAQs

    En general, los planes no están obligados a cubrir la atención recibida de un proveedor fuera de la red (OON). Por ejemplo, si decide consultar a un médico de cabecera que no pertenece a la red de su plan, es posible que su aseguradora no cubra la factura o, si lo hace, podría tener que pagar un costo compartido mucho mayor que si hubiera optado por consultar a un proveedor dentro de la red. En…

  • Questions About Essential Health Benefits

    Perspective

    The Institute of Medicine (IOM) recently issued its long-awaited report on defining the essential health benefits under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). As expected, the committee preparing the IOM report did not recommend which specific services should be covered, but rather discussed what the process should be for defining the essential benefits, which all insurers selling coverage to individuals and small businesses will have to provide beginning in 2014. Somewhat unexpected was their recommendation to set a…

  • An Employer Health Benefits Balance Sheet

    Perspective

    There seems to be growing interest in the question of how many employers will keep offering coverage to their full-time employees once the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is fully implemented in 2014, or instead will choose to stop offering coverage and pay a penalty. While there is some good analysis and plenty of conjecture, it is impossible to predict with any certainty how employers will react at this moment because some of the key rules…

  • The Budget Trigger and Health Reform

    Perspective

    No doubt it will take some time to sort out how elements of the debt deal (formally "The Budget Control Act of 2011") will all work. Delving into the details of how it affects subsidies in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) to make insurance more affordable helps to illustrate how complex this business can be. Let's start with a short primer on the ACA subsidies. Starting in 2014 people buying insurance on their own in…

  • Insurance Brokers and the Medical Loss Ratio

    Perspective

    In a close vote, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) recently adopted a resolution urging Congress and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to exempt insurance broker and agent compensation from medical loss ratio (MLR) requirements or otherwise adjust the requirements to ease their effect. HHS last week released its final MLR rule, maintaining its original decision to count broker compensation as an administrative cost for insurers. H.R. 1206, a bill that…

  • Kaiser November Health Tracking Poll: Individual Elements of the ACA Popular with the Public

    Perspective

    After taking a negative turn in October, the public’s overall views on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) returned to a more mixed status this month. Still, Americans remain somewhat more likely to have an unfavorable view of the law (44 percent) than a favorable one (37 percent). The Kaiser Family Foundation's November Health Tracking Poll also finds that individual elements of the law are viewed favorably by a majority of the public. The law’s…