Senate to vote on Affordable Care Act

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - A Senate vote on the Affordable Care Act is scheduled for Thursday, and Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff says millions could see their premiums double if Congress does not extend the enhanced ACA premium tax credits.

Ossoff and several Georgians warned that failure to extend the expanded subsidies — introduced as temporary COVID-era relief — could lead to a sharp rise in costs and force hundreds of thousands of people to lose or drop their health insurance.

“This is about people who stand to lose their health insurance or face devastating financial impacts because they can’t afford insurance at a time where everything else is high,” Sen. Ossoff said during remarks Wednesday.

He warned that premiums could jump drastically if lawmakers do not act.

Republican lawmakers counter that the expanded subsidies are temporary measures that proved costly and should not be made permanent. They argue that continuing the higher subsidies masks underlying price issues instead of addressing them.

Republicans are pushing for reforms they say would lower costs through reduced regulations, increased competition, and alternative insurance options-- rather than simply extending expensive subsidies.

Rep. Ralph Norman of South Carolina said lawmakers are working to find a bipartisan solution and urged against drastic procedural moves.

“The consensus is we need to come up with something... We don’t want a discharge petition. That would hurt everybody. You get nothing. So I think you’ll see us working pretty much around the clock to try to come up with something in a positive way,” Norman said.

“The cheapest plan that is available to me through ACA without tax credits being extended, a bronze plan with $10k deductible, it will cause my family 650 or 675 a month, and I can’t afford it,” said one ACA Enrollee, Nora Pullen.

The dispute over the subsidies was one of the major issues during the recent government shutdown debates. With the Senate vote approaching, both sides are preparing their arguments for the floor.

WTOC will be following the vote tomorrow and will bring updates as new details become available.