1. United States
2. Minn.
3. Letter

I am writing with deep concern about the looming expiration of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies that millions of Americans rely on for affordable health coverage. Senator Bernie Sanders has warned that stripping health care from 15 million Americans could result in as many as 50,000 preventable deaths each year. This is not an abstract statistic—it is a matter of life and death for families in Minnesota and across the nation. Right now, insurance companies are already notifying families of steep premium increases if subsidies are allowed to lapse. The enhanced ACA subsidies—first expanded during the pandemic—are set to expire unless Congress acts. If they are not extended, premiums for middle-class families will skyrocket, deductibles will rise, and millions of low-income Americans, including people with disabilities, will lose coverage altogether. Republican leaders have floated a one-year extension of these subsidies. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has rightly called this proposal “cynical” and “laughable.” A one-year patch is nothing more than a political maneuver designed to push the real crisis past the midterm elections. After that, families will once again face devastating premium hikes, while politicians who engineered this trap will continue to enjoy taxpayer-funded health care and six-figure salaries. This is not the first time Americans have been offered temporary crumbs while billionaires and corporations receive permanent tax breaks. We cannot allow health care—a basic human right—to be treated as a bargaining chip in partisan games. In summary, I urge you to act decisively and reject any short-term political maneuvers that jeopardize the health and security of millions of Americans. The stakes could not be higher. To be clear: • A one-year extension of ACA subsidies is a political trap, not a solution. • Allowing subsidies to lapse will cause premiums to skyrocket, deductibles to rise, and millions to lose coverage. • Studies show that stripping health care from millions could lead to tens of thousands of preventable deaths each year. • Politicians will keep their own taxpayer-funded health care while ordinary families suffer. • Americans overwhelmingly support permanent ACA subsidy expansion, not temporary patches. Health care is not a bargaining chip—it is a fundamental right. Please stand with your constituents, not with partisan games, and fight for a permanent solution that protects families, strengthens our communities, and upholds the dignity every American deserves. Congress (House and Senate)