Governor Ferguson, Democratic Congressional leaders urge extension of critical affordable health care tax credits

On Jan. 1 at least 80,000 Washingtonians could lose health care if ACA's Enhanced Premium Tax Credits are allowed to expire

BELLEVUE -At a press event Friday, Governor Bob Ferguson joined members of Congress at Overlake Medical Center in Bellevue to warn Washingtonians about the federal government's latest threat to health care access and affordability.

Unless Congress extends them, the Enhanced Premium Tax Credits under the Affordable Care Act will expire at the end of this year. These credits make private health plans through the state's Health Benefit Exchange more affordable. Without them, at least 80,000 Washingtonians could be priced out of the exchange and lose their health care coverage, compounding the health care crisis already created by the administration's cuts to Medicaid.

Ferguson spoke to reporters Friday alongside House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Congresswoman Suzan DelBene (WA-01) and Congresswoman Kim Schrier, M.D. (WA-08), as well as impacted community members.

In all, if these tax credits are allowed to expire, the estimated loss in savings for Washingtonians statewide totals approximately $285 million.

"The cruel attacks on health care access by the Trump Administration and Congressional Republicans are morally bankrupt," Ferguson said. "Failing to extend these common-sense tax credits is one more way the federal government is making health care less affordable and less accessible to residents across our state. Congress must act now to extend these credits and protect health care access for tens of thousands of Washingtonians."

Right now, approximately 286,000 Washingtonians are enrolled in private health care plans through the Health Benefit Exchange. At least 80,000 Washingtonians can only afford their private plans from the exchange because of the Enhanced Premium Tax Credits. If the credits go away, so do their health care plans. For those who lose the tax credits but manage to keep their coverage, their premiums will increase significantly starting Jan. 1.

The savings from these tax credits are significant. Washingtonians who use them save an average of $1,330 annually in premiums. For seniors, it is even greater, with an average of $1,910 in annual savings.

If these tax credits go away, the state's Health Benefit Exchange estimates that a family of three living in King County making $52,000 a year could see their annual premiums increase fivefold, from $490 per year to more than $2,800 per year.

As with the Medicaid cuts, rural Washington will be disproportionately affected if the tax credits expire. Residents in Central and Eastern Washington will see net premium increases of 80 or 90 percent. For example, a senior living in Yakima County making $41,000 a year who is currently paying $70 a year in health insurance premiums could see those premiums spike to almost $2,000 a year.

Moreover, expiration of these tax credits would compound the devastating health care crisis caused by Medicaid cuts that were previously passed by Congressional Republicans. The approximately 80,000 Washingtonians who could lose their health care because of expiring tax credits would be in addition to the 250,000 Washingtonians who are expected to lose their health care as a result of the cuts to Medicaid in the Big Betrayal Bill. In fact, the Health Benefit Exchange estimates Washington's uninsured rate of 4.8 percent could double if these tax credits expire on the heels of Medicaid cuts.

For more information about Washington's Health Benefit Exchange, visit https://www.wahbexchange.org.