Dear Representative:
On behalf of the millions of members and supporters of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, I write to strongly urge you to vote against H.R. 6703, the Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act because it does not include the urgently-needed extension of the enhanced premium tax credits (EPTCs) in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) health insurance marketplaces.
If Congress fails to extend the ACA EPTCs, 4.8 million Americans will become uninsured, premiums will increase by as much as 58 percent to 59 percent and out-of-pocket costs could grow by an average of 114 percent.
Midlife and older adults comprise a significant portion of those who currently rely on ACA marketplace coverage and federal premium tax credits. In 2025, 41 percent, or 10 million people enrolled in ACA marketplace health insurance are ages 45 to 64. Underscoring the importance of ACA marketplace coverage for those with chronic conditions, evidence shows that those entering Medicare after access to ACA marketplace coverage have fewer hospitalizations, lower medication use for chronic diseases, lower out-of-pocket medical costs, and fewer limitations in activities of daily living that necessitate long-term care. But the reverse will be true for millions of Americans if Congress allows the ACA EPTCs to expire.
In addition, H.R. 6703 recycles old ideas that do nothing to address the current marketplace affordability crisis, but instead siphons off healthier people into skinnier, lightly regulated plans, leaving sicker people in the ACA marketplaces facing higher premiums and less stable risk pools.
The National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare urges you to vote against H.R. 6703. Instead, we support a clean multi-year extension of ACA premium tax credits. This is the only realistic hope to stop the devastating increases of hundreds to thousands of dollars per year in health care coverage costs for millions of Americans, which families across the country will face starting January 1.
Sincerely,
Max Richtman
President and CEO