Leftist Think Tank Admits: Premiums Are NOT Doubling in 2026
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Democrats are citing a KFF (formerly Kaiser Family Foundation) report to claim that “premiums will double” next year if enhanced Exchange subsidies expire. KFF’s own researchers know that this claim is false. The organization’s homepage initially included this graphic:
This claim directly contradicts a separate KFF report “show[ing] a median proposed premium increase of 18%” among Exchange plans for 2026—far from a doubling of premiums. In response, KFF Vice President Cynthia Cox said that “we do plan to update the graphic to be more precise,” and the organization stealth-edited the graphic without disclosing the change publicly:
The revised, deceptive terminology of “premium payments” still conflates total premiums with out-of-pocket costs—the latter term excludes the sizable federal subsidies most enrollees will still receive. It also obscures the fact that changes in out-of-pocket spending will be modest (roughly $50-100 per month) for the vast majority of enrollees.
Some conservatives may view this misleading attempt at scaremongering as yet another reason not to spend $350 billion (plus interest) to lower out-of-pocket costs by an average $50-100 per month for a small segment (about 6 percent) of the population receiving Exchange subsidies.