Last Week for Open Enrollment
The 2026 Open Enrollment period for ACA Marketplace coverage is active for one more week. To begin coverage February 1, 2026, enrollees need to complete their applications by January 15, 2026. ACA Marketplace plans offer comprehensive coverage to enrollees across a set of essential health benefits. Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) has noted that during the enrollment season, many enrollees might be switching to high deductible bronze or catastrophic plans on the ACA Marketplace. Make sure to educate prospective enrollees about the limitations and risks of plans that may actually limit access to care or increase overall costs, especially for enrollees with disabilities.
Without a December vote to extend the ACA enhanced premium tax credits, enrollees are seeing the roll-out of increased premium payments this new year. Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) analysis showed premiums would more than double with the expiration of tax credits. Congress is running out of time to act. Yesterday, the House passed a proposal for a clean three-year extension of ACA enhanced premium tax credits, though a previous effort to pass that proposal in the Senate failed. This next week, Congress is expected to take action to address extending needed tax credits, with a different bipartisan proposal currently in development. Legislation is expected to be released early next week that would extend the lapsed tax credits for two more years, incorporating access to health savings accounts for enrollees after one year. Additional cost-sharing measures and requirements around eligibility are expected. If a proposal is passed, it is likely that Open Enrollment would be extended or a Special Enrollment Period would be opened.
As 2025 came to a close, Families USA reflected on the mix of losses and gains made this past year around healthcare affordability, citing reforms to lower prescription drug and hospital pricing as key improvements. KFF President and CEO Drew Altman warns in a recent Beyond the Data blog that the current approaches to improving health care affordability “are far from comprehensive health reform plans addressing coverage and costs”. Analysis from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities identifies key ways that current policy developments are failing to meet the cost of living crisis as a whole. Across a range of social drivers of health, we’re seeing access constraints that affect affordability of food, housing, education, and energy – all necessities for maintaining a basic quality of life and good health. With disabled people bearing higher costs to meet their basic needs to begin with, the impact of compounding affordability challenges hits the disability community the hardest. As the base premium costs of ACA Marketplace plans soar by an average national amount of over 21% this year, the Urban Institute sheds light on some of the factors that have fueled concerns that the ACA is in need of deeper structural reform to ensure true affordability.
Medicaid Enrollment
As the ACA Marketplace enrollment season comes to a close, people who qualify can still enroll in Medicaid coverage year-round. Special Enrollment Periods are also available throughout the year for people to apply for Marketplace coverage due to a variety of life changes. Beyond the end of ACA Marketplace Open Enrollment, we will be continuing this newsletter to provide regular updates related to Medicaid and healthcare access in the months ahead.
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