America has an affordability crisis. Electricity bills are rising at twice the rate of inflation. Food prices are rising rapidly. Tariffs squeeze families at every turn. And in a few weeks, more than 24 million Americans will see their health care premiums increase. That is, unless Republicans in Congress move to extend the tax credits subsidizing the plans under the Affordable Care Act.
If the credits run out, the average ACA Marketplace plan premium will more than double. A 60-year-old couple earning $85,000 who used to get health insurance through the ACA exchanges will see their costs top $22,000 next year, more than a quarter of their total income. Across the country, premiums are also rising for employer-sponsored insurance and Medicare plans.
The spike in premiums will not only blow an even bigger hole in families’ future budgets. It will pour gasoline on the already raging fire of medical debt in this country, and government leaders at all levels are not prepared for it.
More than 100 million Americans have some form of medical or dental debt; for more than 15 million, this debt exceeds $1000. Medical debt is especially dangerous because it almost always results from circumstances beyond our control, such as illness or injury. No matter how much families plan, save, and shop around for the best health insurance they can afford, a byzantine system of hospitals, providers, insurance companies, and middlemen bent on maximizing profits leaves Americans scrambling to understand what care they can get and how much they owe, much less how they can afford it.
When millions of people receive notices that their premiums will double on Nov. 1, they will have to choose between going uninsured or enrolling in plans with higher deductibles and higher premiums. Both scenarios leave families with one fall on the playground or one unexpected trip to the doctor away from big bills.
When I worked on this issue at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau during the Biden administration, we learned that more than half of all debt on credit reports was related to medical debt. Even more frustrating, we’ve found that medical debt listed on credit reports is often false. Research shows that the vast majority—nearly 80%—of medical debt reports have some type of error. As a result, millions of people are being chased by debt collectors to pay bills they don’t actually owe.
Due to the psychological and financial burdens of debt, people worry that they may experience more, avoid going to the doctor, and often end up even sicker and with higher bills than they would have been without the debt in the first place. This creates a spiral of health and economic hardship that has ensnared tens of millions of Americans: medical debt begets more medical debt.
Just think of the ticking time bomb created by the unprecedented health care cuts Republicans and Donald Trump have pushed through their first year in office, which will cut more than 15 million people off of health care. By forcing the cost of Obamacare to increase their coverage, millions more will be laid off and pushed closer to the brink of financial ruin to stay healthy.
Trump’s actions are a slap in the face to tens of millions of voters who were promised that inflation would be solved on “Day 1.” In poll after poll, Americans list the cost of living and the economy as their No. 1 concern. Donald Trump and the Republicans have done nothing but raise prices with tariffs, create economic instability that has brought the labor market to a standstill, dismantled the social safety net, and given massive tax breaks to wealthy corporations.
Now, big corporations are poised to benefit from Trump’s health care agenda. As premiums rise and Medicaid cuts take effect, as medical debt skyrockets, debt collectors, medical credit card providers and predatory financial product companies will have even more opportunities to squeeze a few more dollars from stressed and cash-strapped patients. It can be overwhelming for a normal family, already struggling to cope with a confusing health care system that is against them.
It doesn’t have to be this way. America is the only rich country in the world where getting sick can mean ruin. If Trump and the Republicans truly cared about the health and well-being of working families, they would take steps to make health care more affordable and medical debt a thing of the past. At least they wouldn’t write a blank check to debt collectors and big corporations.
This article was originally published on MSNBC.com