Kentucky Governor and Congressman Urge Congress To Extend Tax Credits To Protect Affordable Health Coverage for Kentuckians

Without extension of Affordable Care Act tax credits, Kentuckians will pay thousands of dollars more in annual premiums

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and U.S. Congressman Morgan McGarvey joined together to warn of rising health insurance costs as Kentuckians face steep premium increases due to Congress’s lack of action to extend Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits. Nearly 100,000 Kentuckians with insurance plans through Kentucky’s marketplace, kynect, will see up to 37% higher costs when open enrollment begins this Saturday, Nov. 1. This is a 10 times bigger premium increase than in recent years.

“Extending these tax credits is one of the simplest and most effective ways that can provide stability for the American people and, frankly, there is no excuse for action not to be taken,” said Gov. Beshear. “Things like affordable health care and support for food, these are nonpartisan issues our families need and deserve. It’s time that folks in D.C. stop playing games and put our American families first.”

“The tax credits that make the Affordable Care Act affordable for so many of our neighbors are going to expire at the end of this year,” said Congressman McGarvey. “So, unless Congress acts, health insurance rates are going to skyrocket for every single Kentuckian. Congress must act – because we can. We can make sure people can afford their health care. And we know that when we do this, everyone will be better off.”

The Governor and Congressman were joined by Ann Pipes, a Louisville resident who shared that, if Congress doesn’t take action by Nov. 1, her current premium will rise by more than $900 per month.

“Thanks to the ACA tax credit, our current monthly premium is $350. Without that tax credit, our current monthly premium is $1,275. We do not currently have an extra $900 a month in our budget,” said Pipes. “It’s going to be the first time in my adult life, if this does not get solved, that I’ll be without insurance. It’s really stressful. I’m losing sleep over it. I think all day about what we’re going to do if we lose health insurance.”

Kentucky’s marketplace, kynect, covers small-business owners, older Americans not yet eligible for Medicare and rural Kentuckians who make more than Medicaid recipients but don’t have workplace-sponsored health insurance.

For a typical family of four making $130,000 in Kentucky, the cost of annual premiums alone would increase by more than $12,000, while a 60-year-old couple making $85,000 would pay nearly $24,000 more annually.

In September, Gov. Beshear sent a letter, along with 17 other governors from across the United States, calling on Congressional leaders to extend the credits. More than a month later, no action has been taken.

Gov. Beshear and Rep. McGarvey have called on President Donald Trump and the Republican majority in Congress to immediately extend ACA tax credits to mitigate drastic price hikes that would push affordable health care further out of reach for even more families in Kentucky, after Trump signed a bill into law just months ago that could kick more than 200,000 Kentuckians off Medicaid.

See the full press conference here.