When lawmakers return to D.C. on December 1st, they'll have less than three weeks to debate and potentially extend Biden-era Affordable Care Act subsidies, which are set to expire at the end of this year.
The Senate is guaranteed to take a vote in the first two weeks of December on an extension of those subsidies, but it's not clear if that vote will pass. There's also no guarantee that bill comes up for a vote in the House of Representatives.
President Donald Trump told reporters this week he may be open to an extension for the subsidies. But in the same breath he criticized the act, which was one of former President Barack Obama's signature legislative accomplishments.
"Somebody said, I want to extend it for 2 years. I don't want to extend it for 2 years. I'd rather not extend them at all. It may be some kind of an extension may be necessary to get something else done because the "Unaffordable Care Act" has been a disaster," President Trump said.
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Republicans have long targeted the Affordable Care Act, seeking in President Trump's first term to repeal and replace it, but ultimately coming up short.
One solution Republicans have recently explored is putting funds directly into health savings accounts for Americans to help them pay down the higher premiums of Affordable Care Act plans without subsidies. But it's not clear that solution would be able to pass Congress with the bipartisan support needed to get to President Trump's desk before open enrollment expires.
According to an analysis by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, if Congress does not pass an extension of the current subsidies, millions could lose their health insurance over the next decade, in part due to the higher price for insurance premiums.
