Wyden, Blunt Rochester Introduce Legislation to Protect Patients, Ensure More Americans Can Afford Health Care

Wyden, Blunt Rochester Introduce Legislation to Protect Patients, Ensure More Americans Can Afford Health Care

Washington, DC - U.S. Senators Ron Wyden, D-Ore., ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, and Lisa Blunt Rochester, D-Del., a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, today introduced the Restoring Patient Protections and Affordability Act to protect health care coverage for millions of Americans and improve the effectiveness of the ACA Health Insurance Marketplace. This legislation would renew the enhanced premium tax credits for 3 years, extend the 2026 Open Enrollment period, reduce paperwork for families, and lower out-of-pocket caps.

"Americans today are waking up to a cold reality: health care costs are doubling, tripling, or even worse," Wyden said. "While Trump is playing the blame game on America's affordability crisis, Democrats are working day and night to extend ACA tax credits so that working families nationwide can access quality care without breaking the bank."

"The cost of living is skyrocketing, and the last thing hardworking Americans need is another bill added to their everyday expenses," Blunt Rochester said. "After causing the longest government shutdown in history, Republicans refused to work on a solution to extend critical ACA subsidies, putting health care access at risk for millions of Americans. We must not only restore access to affordable care but make it easier for families to shop for the best plans for them. That is why Senator Wyden and I are introducing the Restoring Patient Protections and Affordability Act to lower costs and keep people covered. I look forward to working with our colleagues to finally take action on this issue."

More than 20 million Americans rely on ACA Marketplace plans to access comprehensive health coverage, including small business owners, farmers and ranchers, independent contractors, and those who cannot afford insurance through their employers. Through the Republican reconciliation bill and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) regulations, the Trump administration has systematically erected barriers that have made it both more difficult and more expensive for Americans to access health care coverage. With Open Enrollment underway, people are actively logging onto healthcare.gov to shop for insurance coverage in 2026 and seeing massive premium spikes that will cause millions of people to forgo coverage altogether.

The Restoring Patient Protections and Affordability Act would:

1. Prevent health insurance premium spikes by extending the enhanced premium tax credits for three years.
2. Extend Open Enrollment, restore navigator funding, and reinstate the low-income special enrollment period, protecting Americans who buy their own insurance on the ACA Marketplace from the chaos and confusion caused by Republicans.
3. Force insurance companies to be more transparent by requiring that health plan enrollees are notified of new information about eligibility, new premium amounts, and extended Open Enrollment.
4. Make it easier for working people to enroll in ACA coverage by reinstating automatic reenrollment and protecting against bureaucratic coverage denials.
5. Lower premiums, deductibles, and cost sharing for millions of Americans by reversing flawed Trump administration insurance payment formulas and by reinstating the bronze to silver cross walk.
6. Protect consumers from surprise premium bills by reinstating the repayment caps for those who inadvertently overestimate their income.

This legislationis cosponsored by U.S. Senators Cory Booker, D-N.J., Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Tina Smith, D-Minn.

A section-by-section summary is available here. Full text is available here.

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