The ‘Affordable’ Care Act: Premiums in the ACA Marketplace Set to Skyrocket in 2026

(Red State)—Health insurance premiums for Americans buying coverage through Affordable Care Act marketplaces will spike by a median of 15 percent in 2026, which is the largest increase in more than five years. For millions of families, this means premium payment increases of over 75 percent as enhanced tax credits expire.

What we’re about to witness is the impact of government interference in sectors where it has no constitutional authority to operate.

This crisis was baked into the ACA from day one. When Barack Obama promised Americans they could keep their doctors and that his plan would make healthcare affordable, he was selling a fantasy that required ever-expanding federal subsidies to maintain the illusion of success. Now, as those artificial supports crumble, we’re seeing the true cost of Democratic governance that believes Washington knows better than free markets.

The Subsidy Addiction Economy

Since enhanced premium tax credits were introduced, ACA marketplace enrollment more than doubled from 11.4 million people in 2020 to 24.3 million people in 2025. Democrats celebrated this as proof that their system worked. What they actually created was a massive dependency program that required $705 in average annual subsidies per enrollee to function, which is about a 44 percent reduction in what people actually paid for their coverage.

This was government price manipulation rather than healthcare reform. The enhanced credits resulted in an additional 10 million people gaining coverage through the marketplaces, but at what cost? When success depends entirely on taxpayer-funded subsidies that Congress must repeatedly extend, you haven’t solved the underlying problem—you’ve just made taxpayers responsible for it.

• Read More: redstate.com