16 Republicans Co-Sponsor Bipartisan Bill to Extend Health Subsidies Amid GOP Divide
A bipartisan effort to extend enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies has gained significant traction in the House, with 16 Republicans now co-sponsoring legislation that seeks a one-year extension of boosted premium tax credits.
The bill, authored by Rep. Jen Kiggans (R-Va.) and Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.), aims to prevent the expiration of these subsidies on December 31. The impending end has sparked tensions within the House GOP conference, particularly among moderates who argue party leadership has not provided a viable alternative for Americans facing rising insurance costs.
In a closed-door meeting Wednesday, centrist Republicans expressed frustration that the House GOP’s upcoming healthcare package does not address expiring tax credits.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) now confronts the possibility that moderate Republicans could join Democrats in signing a discharge petition—a rarely used maneuver that would force a floor vote on extending subsidies.
The Kiggans-Gottheimer bill has 38 co-sponsors, including the 16 Republican lawmakers who have defected from their party’s right wing. These representatives include Reps. Mike Lawler and Nick LaLota (New York), Rob Bresnahan, Ryan Mackenzie, and Brian Fitzpatrick (Pennsylvania), María Elvira Salazar and Carlos Gimenez (Florida), Jeff Van Drew and Tom Kean (New Jersey), David Valadao and Kevin Kiley (California), Juan Ciscomani (Arizona), Jeff Hurd (Colorado), Don Bacon (Nebraska), and Monica De La Cruz (Texas).
The legislation introduces income caps, fraud-prevention measures, and requires Congress to hold a vote by July 2026 on additional reforms aimed at reducing insurance premiums. A unique procedural element establishes fast-track rules for future bills related to enhanced premium tax credits: committees in both chambers would have five legislative days to advance such proposals before automatic floor discharge if supported by at least 10 lawmakers from each party.
Meanwhile, House GOP leaders are preparing their own healthcare package next week that explicitly does not extend subsidies. Johnson criticized the Democrats’ approach as merely continuing “COVID-era subsidies” and lacking reforms to address waste, fraud, and abuse.
In the Senate, Republican committee chairs Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana) and Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) are advancing an alternative proposal that would allow health coverage subsidies to expire and redirect federal assistance into consumer-controlled health savings accounts. They claim this plan could reduce premiums by 11% by 2027 through “cost-sharing reduction payments.”
President Donald Trump endorsed the Senate Republicans’ concept, stating aboard Air Force One: “I don’t want to give the insurance companies any money.”
