Health care advocates and progressive groups across Florida said the U.S. Senate’s failure to extend premium subsidies for the Affordable Care Act was a “disheartening setback” that will significantly raise the cost of health insurance for nearly 5 million Floridians, including hundreds of thousands of people in South Florida.
The Senate on Thursday rejected two proposals to address the problem and an emerging health care package from House Republicans does not include an extension, all but guaranteeing that many Americans will see much higher insurance costs in 2026. The subsidy expires Dec. 31.
Florida’s two Republican senators — Sen. Rick Scott and Sen. Ashley Moody — joined the majority in voting against the two bills.
Scott said the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, has failed and needs to be overhauled.
In a Dec. 1 op-ed published by Fox News, Scott said Obamacare :created a system that enriched insurance companies and hospitals and screwed over Americans." Last month, he proposed his new bill, the More Affordable Care Act, to "fix Obamacare and drive down costs for the American people.
READ MORE: Competing health care plans fail in the Senate as ACA premium hikes loom
The health care advocates and progressive groups in Florida backing the extension of tax credits said they have been lobbying Congress for months, saying that 4.7 million Florida residents benefit from them because they make health insurance more affordable.
“Letting these enhanced premium tax credits expire will increase the population of uninsured people in Florida to levels we haven’t seen since before the Affordable Care Act,” said Erica Li, Health Policy Analyst for the Florida Policy Institute. “The result would be catastrophic, with Florida experiencing the deepest impacts of any state in the nation.”’
Li predicted many Floridians will be forced to pay much more for health insurance premiums or may go without health insurance coverage.
“Floridians are bracing for higher premiums, coverage losses, and delayed treatment at a time when access to affordable healthcare has never been more vital."Melanie Williams, Policy Director for Florida Health Justice Project.
“The runaway costs of health insurance make it clear that significant reforms are needed,” said Scott Darius, Executive Director of Florida Voices for Health. “Florida’s working middle class continues to be squeezed by the cost of living and urgently needs relief to afford coverage.”
Zelalem Adefris, CEO of Catalyst Miami, said Miami-Dade County will be most impacted because it has the highest number of ACA Marketplace enrollees in the country. About 1 million Miami-Dade residents qualify for the subsidy.
“Floridians are bracing for higher premiums, coverage losses, and delayed treatment at a time when access to affordable healthcare has never been more vital,” said Melanie Williams, Policy Director for Florida Health Justice Project. “This decision deepens inequities and puts the health and financial stability of millions at risk. We urgently call on federal leaders to reverse course and protect the life-saving coverage our communities depend on, our lives depend on it.”
READ MORE: More than 1 million ACA enrollees in Miami-Dade to pay higher premiums if federal tax credits expire
Jared Nordlund, Florida State Director for UnidosUS, the nation’s largest Hispanic civil rights organization, said the actions in Congress are “a painful reminder of how out of touch some of our federal leaders are with the everyday realities facing Florida’s families.”
“By voting against extending the ACA’s enhanced premium tax credits, U.S. Senators Rick Scott and Ashley Moody have put the health and financial stability of millions at risk,” he said. “These credits have been a lifeline for 4.7 million Floridians, including many Hispanics, who depend on affordable coverage to keep their families healthy and secure.”
Coy Jones, Florida Political Director of 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East and SEIU Florida State Council Vice President, said health care workers said the rejection of legislation will leave many Floridians choosing to go uninsured because of the highcost.
“Our union of nurses and other frontline healthcare workers know painfully well the suffering that will result in a vote that makes health insurance unaffordable to millions of Floridians,” Jones said. “Our family members and friends will skip essential care; or they will end up in crisis at the emergency room, exponentially increasing the cost of care to all of us.”
