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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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  • Why Deductibles Would Rise Under the GOP Health Care Plan

    From Drew Altman

    This inaugural Drew Altman column for Axios examines how the GOP House bill would impact deductibles for people who buy insurance in the non-group market. A KFF analysis for the column shows deductibles in a typical non-group plan would be about $1550 higher under the American Health Care Act compared to the Affordable Care Act.

  • Public Opinion on Women’s Health and Preventive Care

    Feature

    This slideshow draws on findings from a recent Kaiser Health Tracking Poll to provide an in-depth look at public opinion on women's health and preventive care. Results include Americans' awareness and attitudes toward Affordable Care Act provisions for women's health and preventive care, as well as the public's views toward federal funding for Planned Parenthood and reproductive health care for lower income women.

  • Data Note: What if Per Enrollee Medicaid Spending Growth Had Been Limited to CPI-M from 2001-2011?

    Issue Brief

    Congress is currently debating the American Health Care Act (AHCA), which would repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and also make substantial changes to the structure and financing of Medicaid. Among other provisions, the AHCA would use a per capita cap policy to cap federal funds to states for Medicaid. This data note examines what the implications of tying per enrollee growth to CPI-M would have been for the 2001-2011 period for federal…

  • Early Implementation Experience of Medicaid Expansion Waivers in Michigan and Indiana Can Help Inform Future Medicaid Waivers

    News Release

    Michigan and Indiana, led by Republican governors, each obtained a waiver from the Obama Administration to expand Medicaid in ways that differ from the terms of the Affordable Care Act. Notably, both states’ expansions include provisions related to charging enrollees premiums, requiring them to contribute to health accounts and providing incentives to participate in healthy behavior programs, though the details and implementation vary considerably between the two states. A new analysis from the Kaiser Family…

  • Medicaid Family Planning Programs: Case Studies of Six States After ACA Implementation

    Report

    In light of the coverage trends and other ACA-related changes, this paper describes the impact on women and their partners, as well as family planning providers, of the impact of family planning expansion programs under Medicaid. It is based largely on interviews with state officials, providers and consumer advocates in Alabama, California, Connecticut, Illinois, Missouri and Virginia – a cross-section of states in terms of geography, Medicaid expansion status, and implementation of a Medicaid family…

  • Analysis: Insurer Financial Indicators Show Signs of Stabilizing After Transition to ACA Marketplaces

    News Release

    A new Kaiser Family Foundation analysis of key insurer financial indicators suggests that the individual insurance market showed signs of stabilizing in 2016, although profitability remained below the level of performance prior to the opening of the Affordable Care Act’s insurance marketplaces. The new analysis tracks insurer financial performance in the individual market through two key indicators: average medical loss ratios (the share of health premiums paid out as claims) and average gross margins per…

  • Why Trump’s Dealmaking Model Doesn’t Fit Health Care Policy

    From Drew Altman

    In this column as an Axios contributor, Drew Altman discusses President Trump's threat to withhold cost sharing subsidies and questions whether his approach to deal making can bridge health care's partisan and ideological divide. "Health policy is not like real estate," he says.

  • Kaiser Health Tracking Poll – Late April 2017: The Future of the ACA and Health Care & the Budget

    Report

    With the ongoing debate about the future of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the latest tracking poll examines the public awareness of and attitudes about some recent developments related to the 2010 health care law, including uncertainty about cost-sharing reduction payments and insurers opting out of some health insurance marketplaces. The poll also takes a look at Americans’ budget and health care priorities.