Congress Must Hold the Line for Affordable Healthcare—Including Abortion

For many Americans, life is hard and only getting harder. Everything is expensive—healthcare, childcare, food, housing, you name it. In fact, while overall economic numbers may look steady, they are hiding a grim reality: Only rich people are spending money right now in the United States, with people who make under roughly $120,000 hardly spending any money at all.

And when it comes to expenses, up to 25% of people’s household incomes are going toward healthcare costs–and if you’re in the lower income bracket, you’re spending up to 33%. Anything that makes the basic care that people need more affordable is absolutely crucial.

Right now, a key policy that is keeping coverage costs down is under threat. Not only that, but our reproductive care, including abortion coverage, is under threat too.

Thanks to something called the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Premium Tax Credits, which were enacted in 2021, insurance premiums are more affordable for millions of Americans. In fact, since they were enacted, more people than ever have gotten health insurance through ACA marketplaces. Currently, 24 million people are enrolled, and the vast majority of them rely on these credits to keep costs down, saving them on average over $700 annually. Those credits are the difference for millions of families between the ability for people to continue having basic preventative care or possibly foregoing insurance coverage because of high costs. Next year people will see up to a 114% increase in how much they’re paying for healthcare if the ACA Tax Credits aren’t extended.

We simply cannot afford for the anti-abortion movement to use people’s healthcare as a bargaining chip to advance their extremist unpopular agenda, and everyday Americans cannot afford the consequences.

But why are these credits important for reproductive rights? For states that require abortion coverage or don’t implicitly ban it, these credits also make coverage for abortion access more affordable, even with the harmful and dangerous Hyde Amendment that already bans any federal funding for abortion, requiring states to segment the funds. And with the deadline to renew these credits coming up on December 30 of this year, it's crucial that Congress extend them to ensure that Americans don’t see their premiums double next year—or don’t lose access to abortion coverage.

Anti-abortion groups have already tried to hijack negotiations and put the cost-saving program at risk, but we’re fighting back. All* Above All has joined with more than 90 other organizations—from civil rights groups to healthcare advocates—in making it clear to Congress that not only must these tax credits be extended, but they need to continue to include the comprehensive reproductive healthcare that millions of Americans rely on.

Imposing new federal abortion restrictions would force insurers to drop abortion coverage or exit ACA marketplaces altogether; threaten the ability of states to require abortion coverage in private insurance; deny millions of enrollees, including those not using subsidies, access to comprehensive health plans; and push care further out of reach for those already facing systemic barriers, including women of color, immigrants, young people, LGBTQ+ people, people with disabilities, and people in rural communities.

We simply cannot afford for the anti-abortion movement to use people’s healthcare as a bargaining chip to advance their extremist unpopular agenda, and everyday Americans cannot afford the consequences.

With the Big Dangerous Bill Act passing, healthcare will become increasingly out of reach for millions of Americans with rural hospitals and reproductive health clinics across the country first on the chopping block. With the government shutdown in effect, it is more important now than ever for Congress to hold the line in protecting our rights to affordable coverage and comprehensive healthcare. Our health and our lives depend on it.