President Donald Trump made it clear this week that he does not want to keep the enhanced Obamacare subsidies that are set to end at the close of the year.
Reports circulated that the White House was preparing to push a two-year extension. Trump shut that down immediately.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One while traveling to Mar-a-Lago, the president confirmed that he would prefer to let the subsidies expire altogether.
He told reporters that “somebody said I want to extend them for two years. I don’t want to extend them for two years. I’d rather not extend them at all.”
The president argued that any extension would only be considered if it helped secure a larger policy victory, calling the Affordable Care Act a disaster for families and taxpayers.
He said that the “un Affordable Care Act has been a disaster.”
MS NOW, formerly known as MSNBC, claimed on Sunday that the White House was preparing a framework to extend the enhanced tax credits through the end of 2027 while tightening eligibility rules.
That report put Republicans in Congress on edge. Many lawmakers were dumbfounded by the claim and questioned whether the White House was shifting its position, according to the New York Post.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt dismissed the report and made it clear that the president was not pursuing an extension.
Trump reiterated that point. He said he prefers a completely different plan that gives money to the American people rather than insurance companies.
“I like my plan the best. Don’t give any money to the insurance companies, give it to the people directly. Let them buy their own health care plan,” he said.
Several Republican senators, including Bill Cassidy of Louisiana and Rick Scott of Florida, have proposed plans that redirect funding from the enhanced subsidies into direct payments for Americans to buy coverage independently.
The subsidies have been a major point of leverage for Democrats. They used the issue to pressure Republicans during the 43-day government shutdown that ended on Nov. 12. Senate Republicans agreed only to hold a vote on the matter next month.
The enhanced subsidies were created under the Inflation Reduction Act in 2022. Democrats passed that law without a single Republican vote. Joe Biden signed it into law.
Government analysts have warned about the long-term cost. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that keeping the subsidies in place for the next decade would cost about 350 billion.
Total federal spending on Obamacare, including the enhanced subsidies, reached about 138 billion dollars in fiscal year 2025, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.
