Durbin Slams Republicans For Having No Plan To Reduce Health Care Costs For Americans

Durbin Slams Republicans For Having No Plan To Reduce Health Care Costs For Americans

In his speech on the Senate floor, Durbin described the massive increase in insurance premiums American families will face next year

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today delivered a speech on the Senate floor demanding that congressional Republicans work with Democrats to extend the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) enhanced premium tax credits, which allow tens of millions of Americans nationwide to afford their health insurance premiums. Instead of meeting with Democrats to address this health care crisis, Republicans have shut down the federal government. If these enhanced tax credits are allowed to expire at the end of the year, more than four million Americans are expected to lose their health care coverage, including more than 140,000 people in Illinois.

Durbin began his speech by stressing that the government shutdown is driven by the fact that Congressional Republicans would rather keep the government closed than negotiate to extend the enhanced premium tax credits.

"We have a problem we face that we need to correct and need to correct it now because [of] the decision [that] was made in the 'Big, Beautiful Trump Budget Bill' not to provide tax credits to millions of Americans who qualify under the Affordable Care Act," Durbin said. "Many of them are seeing increased health insurance premiums they never anticipated."

Durbin went on to outline the new prices that will be paid in Cook County, the most populus county in Illinois.

Durbin said, "[In] Cook County… The average monthly premium under the Affordable Care Act now is $226… The projected increase [in Cook County]… goes from $226 a month to $441 a month… That's an increase of 95 percent."

Because of the upcoming expiration of the enhanced premium tax credits, Illinoisans with marketplace health plans began to receive notifications on Monday that their health insurance premiums for 2026 will skyrocket an average of nearly 80 percent, with many people's monthly premiums doubling or even tripling. Durbin then emphasized that the expiration of these tax credits will impact Americans regardless of their state. Almost 60 percent of people relying on the enhanced tax credits live in Republican-led Congressional districts.

"South Dakota, population of about a million people, 53,000 of them are covered by the Affordable Care Act's [enhanced premium tax credits]," Durbin said. "They're facing this kind of increase too in their premiums. I'm sure the Senators from South Dakota, both of them, want to protect their families from health insurance premiums they can't afford. They don't want people to drop coverage. In order to protect them, they have to change the law…and provide assistance for people to pay these health insurance premiums."

Durbin continued, "Across the United States, some 24 million people are facing this reality. It's a hardship for them that can be taken care of and should be on a bipartisan basis."

Durbin noted that Republicans have been trying to overturn the ACA for years, despite having no plan for its replacement. In September 2024, then-candidate Donald Trump stated that he had "concepts of a plan," to replace the ACA. More than a year later, he has yet to reveal one.

Durbin stressed, "They [Republicans] want to do away with the Affordable Care Act. Under the first Trump term, I can still remember when Senator McCain came through those doors at two in the morning and voted no to save the Affordable Care Act. Trump and his first presidency wanted to get rid of it and many Republicans still do. What is their alternative? They have none. They have no alternative. They just are angry over this notion of Obamacare and want to see some other approach to it, but can't put it on paper because it won't do the basics that the Obamacare has done, which provides health insurance across the board to more Americans than ever in our history."

Durbin then called for bipartisan negotiations on ending the government shutdown and extending the enhanced premium tax credits. Unfortunately, President Trump is abroad in Asia as Americans face skyrocketing premiums and Republicans in the House of Representatives have not been in session since September 19th.

"We can take care of the issues that face us, the government shutdown as well as making sure that the Affordable Care Act premiums don't go through the roof, on a bipartisan basis if people of goodwill will agree to do that," Durbin said. "We've spent now a month or longer at this impasse and it's time to break it. Let's reach an agreement that provides health insurance premiums that are affordable. Let's reopen this government, and let's do it sooner rather than later."

Durbin concluded, "Let's have the House of Representatives end their vacation, six-week vacation, come back to Washington, and do the business [for] the people in that chamber as well. And let's put our leaders at the table as well. This can be done and should be done quickly. As soon as the President returns from his overseas trip and the House Republicans can reconvene, which could be tomorrow, let's get down to business."

Video of Durbin's remarks on the Senate floor is available here.

Audio of Durbin's remarks on the Senate floor is available here.

Footage of Durbin's remarks on the Senate floor is available here for TV Stations.

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