WASHINGTON \u2014 The US House of Representatives passed a bill Thursday extending Obamacare subsidies for three years, upping the pressure on Senate Republicans to reconsider the legislation just months after Democrats forced a government shutdown over the issue.<\/p>\n
The House voted 230-196 to approve tens of billions of dollars in Affordable Care Act tax credits, with more than a dozen Republicans crossing party lines to join every Democrat.<\/p>\n
The credits expired on Dec. 31, 2025, after having been previously enhanced through legislation passed under former President Joe Biden and a Democratic-controlled Congress during the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n
Roughly 22 million Americans are expected to have higher health care premiums this year as a result.<\/p>\n
At least nine House Republicans had crossed party lines to advance the bill Wednesday \u2014 and at least 17 GOP lawmakers voted for its final passage.<\/p>\n
\u201cI look forward to working with and voting on a Senate-amended bipartisan compromise in weeks ahead,\u201d Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) said. Hans Pennink for the NY Post<\/p>\n
But the House measure is unlikely to be considered in the Senate, though a bipartisan group of lawmakers have been debating a deal on an alternative bill that would extend the Obamacare credits for just two years \u2014 with some other cost-reducing provisions.<\/p>\n
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) got the necessary 218 signatures for a discharge petition to force a vote in the lower chamber on the bill that passed on a bipartisan basis Thursday.<\/p>\n
On Monday, Jeffries told reporters the bill would \u201cprevent tens of millions of Americans from experiencing dramatically-increased premiums, co-pays and deductibles this month, increases that in some cases could result in everyday Americans paying $1,000 or $2,000 more per month.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) told The Post Thursday that, without the extension, his constituents would have had to start forking over around 8% of their income to pay premiums. REUTERS<\/p>\n
Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) told The Post Thursday that, without the extension, his constituents have to fork over around 8% of their income to pay premiums.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a huge victory for the American people,\u201d Suozzi said, while noting that there are other compromise bills being floated by working groups of Democrats and Republicans, including in the House Problem Solvers Caucus that he co-chairs.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy signature on the discharge for this bill, and my affirmative vote today, is not an endorsement of a clean 3-year extension, rather a commitment to a bipartisan solution,\u201d Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) said.<\/p>\n
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) got the necessary 218 signatures for a discharge petition to force a vote in the lower chamber on the bill that passed on a bipartisan basis Thursday. Bryan Dozier\/NurPhoto\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n
\u201cI look forward to working with and voting on a Senate-amended bipartisan compromise in weeks ahead,\u201d he added. \u201cMy focus is always ensuring Hudson Valley families aren\u2019t caught in the gridlock, and that doesn\u2019t change today.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Jeffries-backed bill would hike the federal budget\u2019s deficit over the next decade by more than $80.5 billion, according to a cost estimate from the Congressional Budget Office<\/a>, and have been criticized by the GOP as an imperfect fix for a \u201cbroken system.\u201d<\/p>\n That\u2019s been exacerbated by a widening fraud scandal currently engulfing Minnesota<\/a>, where nonprofits and state-supported organizations, many with ties to the Twin Cities\u2019 Somali community, have allegedly run off with as much as $9 billion in funding<\/a> meant for low-income families\u2019 child care and other social services.<\/p>\n House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and other House GOPers have claimed the extensions are an imperfect fix. ZUMAPRESS.com<\/p>\n Past federal watchdog reports have faulted some of those programs for not having robust anti-fraud safeguards to verify attendance<\/a>, visit entities<\/a> that received funding to ensure care was being provided and flag those improperly billing states for multiple services.<\/p>\n