Estimated 400K Californians could be ‘priced out’ of Covered CA if Congress doesn’t extend funding

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — This year’s open enrollment for Covered California comes at a pivotal time.

If Congress does not extend the tax credits as part of the government shutdown deal, hundreds of thousands of Californians who have the state’s health insurance could see a 97% increase in monthly premiums.

“We do estimate as many as 400,000 of our current enrollees could be priced out of the coverage they have today,” said Jessica Altman, Covered California Executive Director.

On her first press conference since announcing her congressional retirement, Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi expressed concern over Covered California enrollees facing massive premium hikes due to federal subsidies not being renewed.

“It is a remarkable thing that they would take half a trillion out of Medicare, millions of people out of Medicaid, and not renew the subsidies. Why? To give a tax break to the richest people in America,” said Pelosi.

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There are nearly two million Californians who have signed up for this coverage. One of them is Tessa Spargo, a freelance teacher in San Francisco.

“I’m still here for it and I have to find health insurance on my own. I wouldn’t be able to do it in the open market,” said Spargo.

In San Francisco, nearly 40,000 people rely on this coverage.

“It covers folks up to a higher income level than Medi-Cal. But for many of those folks, health care is still otherwise unaffordable,” said Daniel Tsai, Director of Public Health for San Francisco.

St. Anthony’s foundation’s sees the need up close.

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“We see people trying to recover from addiction issues, from being on the streets. And when the first thing they need to recover is access to health care,” said Larry Kwan, MD, St. Anthony’s Chief Executive Director.

The Affordable Care Act became law in 2010 when Pelosi serve as Speaker of the House. ABC7 News caught up with her ahead of her congressional retirement.

“You were the chief architect for the Affordable Care Act – now you are here speaking about Covered California. What would you like your legacy to be?” ABC7 News reporter Luz Pena asked.

“Not so fast on the legacy. I have another here. I have another year. I think the Affordable Care Act is probably the most substantial, but the legacy is outside mobilization, the participation of people in making it happen,” said Pelosi.

Pelosi urged Californians to sign up for Covered California. The enhanced premium tax credits are set to expire Dec 31, 2025 unless Congress extends it.