Aaron Lehman was already paying a hefty price for his health insurance, which covers him and his wife. But for this Iowa farmer, the already high cost will skyrocket in January with the end of significant aid programs decided by Donald Trump's camp.
Faced with the Republicans' refusal to extend these subsidies linked to the "Obamacare" health insurance program, his monthly bill will increase from $500 to approximately $1,300 (€1,100). That's more than double" , grumbles this 58-year-old grain farmer, who could consequently delay work on his farm.
Like him, more than 20 million working-class and middle-class Americans will face a significant increase in the cost of their health insurance in 2026 due to the end of these subsidies, at the very moment they are already facing persistent inflation. It's stressful for many people“,” Audrey Horn, a young retiree from Nebraska who will pay $300 more, told AFP. Most people cannot afford for one of their bills to increase "All the more so," she says, annoyed.
"Drawing on savings"
For their first contribution in January, she and her husband, who works in a small construction company where he is paid by the hour, will "draw on her retirement savings," she explains. Next year, we probably won't go out to eat as much, even though we didn't do it much to begin with (…) And I'll keep driving my old 2008 Honda for a few more years." she said.
Created in 2010 under former President Barack Obama, "Obamacare" enabled millions of people who previously lacked health insurance coverage for various reasons to benefit from it. This program included financial assistance, which was expanded and strengthened during the Covid-19 pandemic. It is this temporary boost that is now coming to an end.
This issue was at the heart of the standoff between the president's camp and Democratic opponents during the fall budget shutdown. Democrats were demanding an extension of these enhanced subsidies, which Republicans opposed, arguing that they cost taxpayers too much, were subject to abuse, and failed to control rising health insurance prices.
“ It is extremely frustrating that these subsidies are being eliminated to grant tax breaks to millionaires."This is unacceptable," criticizes Andrea Deutsch, owner of a pet supply store in Pennsylvania, referring to a law passed by Congress to that effect. Nobody benefits from people losing their insurance, nobody" she fumed to AFP.
“Most significant setback”
For her, who has suffered from type 1 diabetes since childhood, the adoption of "Obamacare" has changed his life"So, for 2026, she resigned herself to the idea of paying an extra $160 a month for her insurance. But others will simply have to give up: according to a government estimate, the expiration of aid programs is expected to push four million Americans to go without insurance in the next ten years."
Meanwhile, ten million Americans will lose their health insurance, largely due to Donald Trump's major budget bill passed this summer, according to Matt McGough, an expert at the American think tank KFF. All these changes lead to the " the largest decline in health coverage in US history"He insists to AFP. Such a situation could lead to an increase in mortality and health costs for all Americans, with the insured paying for the unpaid bills of the uninsured," he warns.
But things could still change. If they continue to refuse to extend the aid, Republicans are trying to find a solution to limit the explosion of costs, less than a year before the midterm elections in which they hope to preserve their majority.
Especially since the issue is being stirred up by the Democratic opposition, which is making it a key campaign theme. Faced with this risk, Donald Trump has suggested summoning the heads of health insurance companies to his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, where he is spending the holidays. to see if they can lower the prices“.
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