TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV\/Gray Florida Capital Bureau) – The ongoing federal government shutdown is leaving millions of Floridians facing massive health insurance premium increases in the coming weeks, prompting state lawmakers to explore potential intervention measures.<\/p>\n
With votes to end the federal government shutdown failing for three weeks, millions of people across Florida are concerned about potential increases in insurance premiums. Democrats in Congress are trying to extend tax credits for health insurance plans under the Affordable Care Act, but Republicans are not budging.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can\u2019t use the government shutdown as a tool to extend subsidies, subsidies, by the way, the Democrats could have extended permanently when they were in charge, and they chose not to,\u201d said Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Florida.<\/p>\n
The tax credits are scheduled to end with the new year. Without them, KFF analysis says premiums will go up more than $1,000 on average. This will hurt Florida more than any other state, with 4.7 million enrolled in marketplace insurance, and nearly all of them rely on the tax credit.<\/p>\n
\u201cImagine what would happen if those cuts came down from the Federal government, and now people can no longer get the healthcare that\u2019s been a little hard to find,\u201d said Rep. Fentrice Driskell, D-Minority Leader.<\/p>\n
Florida Senate minority leader Lori Berman said there\u2019s something the legislature can do now to help protect people if the credits run out.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s going to be disastrous. We have not expanded Medicaid in the first place in our state. We already have some 800,000 who don\u2019t have insurance, then you\u2019re going to have all these other people who are not going to be able to afford insurance,\u201d said Sen. Lori Berman, D-Minority Leader.<\/p>\n
Florida Republicans want to wait and see what happens in Washington before reacting. Senate President Designate Jim Boyd said Medicaid expansion isn\u2019t on the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I do support helping Floridians who need help. We\u2019ll see what happens when Congress gets back together and gets out of the situation they\u2019re in now, and then we\u2019ll see as a state what we need to do,\u201d said Sen. Jim Boyd, R-Senate President Designate.<\/p>\n
The deadline to make a decision is quickly approaching with open enrollment on the marketplace starting November 1.<\/p>\n
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