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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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  • Health Care Ranks Among Voters’ Top Issues for the 2018 Midterm Elections, But It’s a Lower Priority Among Voters in Battleground States and Districts

    News Release

    Only One in Three Know the Tax Reform Law Repeals the ACA’s Unpopular Individual Mandate Health care and the economy and jobs top voters’ list as “the most important issue” for Congressional candidates to talk about ahead of November’s midterm elections, but the lineup shifts among voters in states and districts with competitive elections, the January Kaiser Health Tracking Poll finds.  When asked how important a series of major national issues are, similar shares say…

  • Gaps in Coverage Among People With Pre-Existing Conditions

    Issue Brief

    The American Health Care Act (AHCA), which has passed the House of Representatives, contains a controversial provision that would allow states to waive community rating in the individual insurance market. In this brief we estimate the number of people with pre-existing conditions who might be affected by such a policy.

  • Kaiser Health Tracking Poll – May 2017: The AHCA’s Proposed Changes to Health Care

    Report

    With House Republicans passing the American Health Care Act (AHCA), their plan to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and the Senate currently debating the plan and discussing their own approach, the latest tracking poll finds more view the ACA favorably than view the AHCA favorably. The poll examines attitudes towards specific provisions included in the replacement plan and how the public thinks the replacement plan will affect their own health care.

  • Poll: Public Views the ACA More Favorably Than Congress’ Plan to Replace It, Though Republicans Favor the Replacement

    News Release

    Public Grows More Pessimistic About How Repeal Will Affect Them Personally Most (55%) of the public holds an unfavorable view of the Congressional plan that would repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, and the same share (55%) want the Senate either to make major changes to the House-passed bill or not pass it all, finds the latest Kaiser Health Tracking Poll. Three in 10 (31%) of the public hold favorable views of the American…

  • State Flexibility to Address Health Insurance Challenges under the American Health Care Act, H.R. 1628

    Issue Brief

    The American Health Care Act (AHCA), a bill passed by the House in May 2017 to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA), would present states with new authority in individual insurance markets, along with a number of difficult problems and choices and limited resources with which to address them. States would be able to obtain waivers and would be eligible for $123 billion in grant funds, including money from a new Patient and…

  • How ACA Repeal and Replace Proposals Could Affect Coverage and Premiums for Older Adults and Have Spillover Effects for Medicare

    Issue Brief

    This brief explains the key AHCA provisions that would reshape the private market to more closely resemble the pre-Affordable Care Act period, and the effects of these changes on adults ages 50-64. The brief also discusses how changes to Medicaid could affect older, low-income adults, and how an increase in the number of uninsured older adults could have implications for the Medicare program in the future.

  • Coronavirus Response and the Affordable Care Act

    Issue Brief

    This post examines the Affordable Care Act's impact 10 years after its enactment and how its provisions, especially those that expand coverage opportunities, could address the health threat and economic upheaval caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

  • Coronavirus Response and the Affordable Care Act

    Policy Watch

    This post examines the Affordable Care Act's impact 10 years after its enactment and how its provisions, especially those that expand coverage opportunities, could address the health threat and economic upheaval caused by the coronavirus pandemic.