By SPEAKIN’ OUT NEWS
Nearly three million Americans have dropped their Affordable Care Act health insurance plans after enhanced federal subsidies expired at the end of 2025, raising concerns that higher costs are forcing families to go without coverage.
A new analysis by KFF found enrollment in Obamacare marketplaces fell from about 21.8 million people in 2025 to roughly 19.2 million this year. Researchers linked much of the decline to the expiration of pandemic-era subsidies that had lowered monthly premiums for millions of households.
Enrollment declined in 49 states. New Mexico was the only exception after using state funds to fully replace the expired federal assistance, allowing enrollment to grow by 14%.
States using the federal HealthCare.gov marketplace experienced an average 15% decline in enrollment, while states operating their own exchanges saw an average drop of about 6%. Some of the steepest declines occurred in Ohio and Oklahoma (32%), Arizona (30%), South Carolina (29%), Indiana (28%), and Louisiana and Mississippi (26%).
Health policy researchers say many consumers who previously qualified for little or no monthly premium are now reconsidering whether they can afford coverage. They also caution that proposed insurance premium increases for 2027 could place additional pressure on families already struggling with healthcare costs.
While the Trump administration attributes much of the enrollment decline to efforts to remove fraudulent enrollments, KFF researchers say the loss of enhanced subsidies remains a major factor affecting participation.