Virginia Dems fight to prevent healthcare losses, premium hikes

Letting Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits expire at the end of the year, as Republicans appear willing to do, could cost tens of thousands of Virginians their health care.

Democrats are fighting to extend health insurance subsidies as part of negotiations with congressional Republicans on the eve of a federal funding deadline that threatens to shut down the government. 

Republicans control Congress and the White House, but need at least 7 Democratic votes in the US Senate to pass any spending bill to avert a shutdown. In exchange for their votes, Democrats want to permanently extend the Affordable Care Act (ACA) enhanced premium tax credits that are set to expire at the end of this year. 

If the subsidies expire, premiums would go up by an average of 75% for ACA enrollees, and rural areas could see an increase of 90%, according to KFF. About 4 million Americans would become uninsured if the enhanced tax credits went away, KFF said, citing an estimate from the Congressional Budget Office. 

In Virginia, the State Corporation Commission (SCC) estimates that 47,000 Virginians would become uninsured if the tax credits expire. Thousands more would likely have to find new health insurance plans. And premiums for ACA plans would go up by 20% even for people who don’t use the tax credits. 

Virginia US Rep. Don Beyer called the ACA “the greatest accomplishment of this century” and said the premium tax credits are an essential part of making the law work for Virginians. 

On a Monday call with reporters, Beyer criticized Republicans for not extending the tax credits as part of President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which also included cuts and changes to Medicaid that are expected to kick millions off their health insurance plans. 

Trump’s bill has already been blamed for the closing of three rural Virginia health clinics. 

“The great irony is that so many of the people that are losing their health care and won’t be able to afford their health care are living in districts represented by Republicans in Virginia right now,” Beyer said.

Democrats have made extending the ACA tax credits a sticking point in negotiations with Republicans over legislation to fund the federal government. Congress has until the end of this month to come up with a plan to keep the government funded and fully operational. 

Asked on Friday about the shutdown fight, Democratic nominee for governor, Abigail Spanberger, said government shutdowns are always costly and never effective. The former congresswoman added that the negative impacts of the One Big Beautiful Bill still need to be addressed. 

“But that can be a separate conversation from ones that threaten the very function of our government and employment of our federal employees,” Spanberger told reporters.

ACA tax credits explained

The ACA enhanced tax credits were created by Democrats in 2021 under the American Rescue Plan as part of the national response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The legislation increased the amount of tax credits and expanded eligibility for the tax credits to households with an annual income that’s over 400% of the federal poverty line. These changes led to millions more people enrolling in ACA plans. 

The enhanced tax credits were originally scheduled to expire in 2022, but were extended another three years as part of the Inflation Reduction Act, one of the signature legislative achievements of the Biden administration. 

The tax credits have helped small business owners and their employees access health care they otherwise could not afford. Lester Johnson, an owner of Mama J’s restaurant in Richmond, said being able to access ACA plans with the help of the tax credits means he and his staff can access preventative care and make regular doctor’s visits. He said he’s worried about what would happen to his business and his employees if the tax credits went away. 

“Times are already tough,” Johnson said on Monday’s call with reporters. “We cannot afford to lose our health care.” 

Virginia Republicans’ stance

While Virginia Democrats press to defend access to health care, at least one Virginia Republican up for re-election next year is attempting to thread the needle between helping her constituents access health care and falling in line with hard right conservatives in the GOP. 

US Rep. Jen Kiggans of Virginia’s 2nd congressional district in Hampton Roads supports extending the tax credits, but just for one year. Under her proposal, the tax credits would expire after the 2026 midterm elections, in which Kiggans’ seat is one of Democrats’ top targets. 

But Democrats point out that Kiggans has already shown where she stands by voting to let the tax credits expire when she supported the One Big Beautiful Bill. Extending the tax credits without making them permanent just delays the pain Americans will feel and does not get to the root of the problem, said US Rep. Bobby Scott of Virginia’s 3rd congressional district. 

“We’re not going to know anything more next year than we know now, so we might as well deal with it,” Scott said on the call with reporters Monday.