Larry Levitt

Small business owners, Uber drivers, early retirees, farmers, people who in many cases just don't have a lot of discretionary income to put towards health insurance.

Well, you know, I don't think anyone sheds any tears for insurance companies, and they'll frankly be just fine.

And they have many other lines of business besides the Affordable Care Act marketplaces.

But, you know, hospitals are going to struggle.

And it's not just these enhanced tax credits and the millions of people who will likely become uninsured if these tax credits are not ultimately extended.

But earlier this year, I know it's been a long year, but earlier this year,

Republicans in Congress passed a bill that cuts roughly a trillion dollars out of both Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act.

That's going to lead to an expected 10 million more people uninsured.

So there are hospitals and clinics, particularly those in rural areas that are operating right on the edge that are going to close.

And we've even seen some already close in anticipation of these cuts.

Do you see any relief on the horizon, something that could help?

There have been some glimmers of bipartisanship.

No Republicans voted for the Affordable Care Act to begin with.

No Republicans voted for these enhanced tax credits in 2021.

But we have seen some Republicans say that these enhanced tax credits should be extended, that –

We need to avoid people seeing big increases in their premiums.

You know, and bipartisanship is not something we see a lot in health care.

So that's a promising sign.

But, you know, frankly, the cuts are going to be enormous.

I mean, the cuts on the horizon.