Economic Futures
22 Million People are Bracing for Higher Healthcare Costs. We’re Taking Action.
11. 07. 2025
Last weekend marked the start of open enrollment for Affordable Care Act (ACA) insurance, and with it, sticker shock for 22 million Americans who rely on the enhanced premium tax credits to afford coverage. Imagine opening your mail or logging in to the online marketplace to see that your premiums are about to double or even triple.
This is the result of congressional Republicans’ massive tax bill that gives tax breaks to corporations and the ultra-wealthy, while gutting nearly $1 trillion from Medicaid and putting an end to the ACA tax credits so many people rely on. This comes at a moment when most Americans are already stretched thin by insurmountable bills with the rising costs of electricity, housing, and groceries—and it’s why congressional Democrats have made protecting affordable healthcare access the defining line in the shutdown fight.
At ESP, we’re fighting to protect the ACA tax credits that keep healthcare within reach for millions of Americans, just like we fought to defend the Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit—lifelines that help families get by. Our sister organization, Economic Security Project Action (ESPA), recently led the Stop the Healthcare Heist campaign, bringing together dozens of national partners and grassroots organizations to expose the human cost of families losing healthcare and hold our leaders accountable for stripping it away.
Over the past few months, we’ve helped make this issue impossible to ignore by securing national coverage, including an op-ed in The New York Times by ESP President Natalie Foster, which warns that healthcare cuts will disproportionately affect Gen Z, and local stories showing the ripple effects in communities in Alaska and Idaho. ESPA also partnered with creators who are explaining the issue and sharing how, as independent contractors, they are personally affected by the expiration of the tax credits, all bolstered by national and state paid media campaigns.
This past week, ESPA led the Stop the Healthcare Heist Week of Action, which coincided with the start of people signing up for healthcare through open enrollment. Together with 30 local partners in 12 states, ESPA supported more than 40 events across the country—from rallies and press conferences to community gatherings—all centering people impacted by the healthcare cuts. ESPA also hosted a national webinar that drew over 1,000 attendees eager to learn how to take action and hosted an educational briefing for creators in partnership with Protect Our Care and Trending Up to arm creators with the stories and facts to #StopTheHealthcareHeist. ESP’s satellite media tour generated 22 TV and radio stories like this one in Dayton, Ohio.
This is what it looks like to pick strategic fights that directly impact our vision of making life affordable for all people. The same economic forces driving up housing and grocery prices are now threatening access to healthcare—and this week’s election results made clear that affordability remains the most powerful issue shaping how people see the economy and experience democracy.
By meeting this moment with clarity and coordination, we’re working to make healthcare affordability a cornerstone of a fairer economy.
Communities Take a Stand for Affordable Care
The ESPA-led Stop the Healthcare Heist Week of Action became the major organizing effort around the Nov. 1 start of open enrollment. Partners like Indivisible, MoveOn, and Working Families Party made these events a top organizing moment on the heels of No Kings Day. Health groups like Families USA and Protect Our Care provided state-by-state data to localize the story. And labor unions like SEIU, AFT, and AFSCME helped organize meetings with legislators and local healthcare events to spotlight stories of those impacted by the price spikes. From town halls and press conferences to candlelight vigils and community gatherings, these actions reminded the public—and Congress—what’s truly at stake when healthcare access is on the line.
- In California’s Central Valley, residents, healthcare workers, and advocates joined Economic Security California Action for a candlelight vigil outside Rep. Valadao’s congressional office to demand accountability. The event highlighted how local families can expect their premiums to double, and nearly 30 rural hospitals in the state are at risk of closing.
- In Idaho, ESPA local partners organized a die-in at the State Capitol with 80 people, representing the Idahoans estimated to die each year without healthcare, paired with a thoughtful op-ed: “Federal health care cuts are creating immense harm to Idaho families that will roll out for years”.
- Pennsylvanians Together in Action hosted a press conference in Harrisburg to call on Congress to extend the ACA tax credits, featuring a fiery state legislator. They also hosted a Monsters, Masks, and Medical Bills community event.
Personal stories are the heart of this campaign, like this story of Jan, who can’t afford to maintain her medical implant without healthcare tax credits. If you or someone you know is being hit by higher premiums or losing coverage from cuts to the ACA and Medicaid, consider sharing your story.
ICYMI: Our Picks
Here are some of our favorite stories, voices, and perspectives from the fight to protect affordable healthcare—each shining a light on what these cuts mean for real people and why this moment matters.
- “G.O.P. to Gen Z: Pay Double for Health Insurance or Go Without”
ESP President Natalie Foster wrote a New York Times op-ed explaining that 24 million people on the ACA marketplace will see their premiums double thanks to cuts to ACA subsidies and Medicaid by Congressional Republicans—and young adults will be hit the hardest. “The decision to lock an entire generation out of affordable coverage will have health and economic implications for decades to come.” - “Obamacare enrollee sees premium spike over 300% as sign-up period begins: ‘This will devastate us'”
As open enrollment began, ACA enrollees like Utah photographer Stacy Cox and her husband learned their premiums were quadrupling, bringing their monthly bill to more than $2,100 a month. “Just that bill right there, that’s more than our mortgage, our insurance, most of our food. That’s what we’re paying per month to live. We can’t afford to double what it costs for us to live just to have health insurance.” - Creators will be hit hard by ACA tax credit cuts
As an independent creator, Economic Futures Cohort member Michael Mezzatesta is one of the millions of Americans facing steep premium hikes as ACA tax credits expire. His healthcare costs are about to triple! “And the worst part is that this is mostly happening so rich people can get tax cuts.” - How these healthcare cuts will drive up costs for everyone
Creator Leigh McGowan shares how cuts to ACA tax credits and Medicaid will hit people with chronic conditions hardest—including her own family—and drive up costs for everyone. Fewer insured people and fewer hospitals mean higher prices across the board. “Health crises are the number one cause of bankruptcy in the nation, and Republicans are out here actively choosing to make it worse.”