KSHB 41 reporter Elyse Schoenig covers the cities of Shawnee and Mission. She also focuses on issues surrounding the cost of health care, saving for retirement and personal debt. If you get your health insurance from the Marketplace, rely on ACA subsidies, or have questions about them, reach out to Elyse.
The House approved the extension of enhanced Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies late Thursday afternoon. These subsidies expired on December 31st, 2025. It now goes to the Senate where, according to NBC News, it's unlikely to pass.
While standard subsidies (premium tax credits) remain in place, the loss of the enhanced tax credits has forced people to make difficult budget adjustments.
According to healthcare nonprofit KFF, out-of-pocket premiums could increase by an average of 114% with the expired enhanced tax credits.
Dawn Wheeler lives in Edwardsville, Kan., and has been relying on ACA subsidies to afford her health insurance for years. She's looking at her health care costs this year with a new kind of fear.
"Monthly premium was $69.16," Wheeler said. "For this year, it’s gone all the way up to $272.32. I’m going from a $0 -deductible to an almost $3000-deductible, and then all of my copays are doubling and some almost tripling."
The numbers add up even quicker for her. She's been fighting metastatic breast cancer for almost a decade.
"It's a lot of doctor's appointments," she said. "It's a lot of specialists. I'm going to have to pay thousands of dollars before my insurance kicks in, plus paying the higher premium."
Missouri Sen. Eric Schmitt spoke with KSHB 41 local government reporter Charlie Keegan after the subsidies first expired.
"Extending the ACA and Obamacare isn't the answer," Sen. Schmitt said. "We need real reform."
When Dawn Wheeler looks at her costs now, she sees new kinds of sacrifice.
"I’m looking at ways to cut down our grocery bill," she said. "Christmas and birthdays are going to look different this year."
She knows that even with so much to work through, having insurance is her only option.
"The alternative for me is, frankly, it’s death," Wheeler said.
