On Friday, Chris Bray posted an article at Substack about the misleading reporting on the current government shutdown.
The article shows an X post from Senator Amy Klobuchar:
The article explains:
The Galls are among roughly 22 million ACA marketplace enrollees — about 92% of all enrollees — who face the prospect of higher premiums in 2026, according to KFF, a nonpartisan health policy research group.
Democrats are pushing Republicans to extend the enhanced subsidies that make enrollees’ health premiums cheaper, as part of a deal to end the federal government shutdown that began Oct. 1. Republicans have said they want to negotiate any extension of ACA subsidies outside of legislation that would reopen the government.
See the premise? Subsidies “make enrollees’ health premiums cheaper.”
The article points out that the subsidies don’t go to the people paying for the health insurance premiums–they go to the insurance companies (who oddly enough make donations to candidates’ campaign funds).
The article explains:
They (subsidies) make enrollees’ health premiums divided, splitting the cost between the person paying for the insurance and the taxpayers who fund the subsidy, but they flatly don’t make the premiums cheaper. It’s like you go to the supermarket and buy filet mignon, and it only costs you a dollar — wow, filet mignon is so affordable now! — but the supermarket bills the federal government for $25 every time you make that purchase, and the government gets the $25 from you as taxes. The thing costs what it costs. Subsidies don’t make it cheaper. They just hide the expense at the point of purchase. Subsidies shift and obscure.
Why should insurance companies work to be more efficient when the government will support them? This is very similar to what happened to college tuition when student loans became the norm.
The article concludes:
The ACA subsidies are only $91 billion a year, though, so it’s practically nothing.
See also this 2023 CBO report, which projects explosive growth in federal healthcare costs over the next decade.
We’re not having a debate about giving money to Bill and Shelly so they can enjoy their early retirement. We’re having a debate about how much money the federal government — meaning you, if you pay taxes — is going to give to private corporations. Congressional Democrats are servicing their corporate clients.
“Lack of transparency is a huge political advantage.”


