This is the best OEP ever for the ACA for several reasons:
The expanded/enhanced premium subsidies first introduced in 2021 via the American Rescue Plan, which make premiums more affordable for those who already qualified while expanding eligibility to millions who weren't previously eligible, are continuing through the end of 2025 via the Inflation Reduction Act;
A dozen states are either launching, continuing or expanding their own state-based subsidy programs to make ACA plans even more affordable for their enrollees;
100,000 or more DACA recipients are finally eligible to enroll in ACA exchange plans & receive financial assistance!
Every year, I spend months painstakingly tracking every insurance carrier rate filing (nearly 400 for 2025!) for the following year to determine just how much average insurance policy premiums on the individual market are projected to increase or decrease.
Carriers tendency to jump in and out of the market, repeatedly revise their requests, and the confusing blizzard of actual filing forms sometimes make it next to impossible to find the specific data I need.
I really only need three pieces of information for each carrier:
9/29/25: Welcome Paul Krugman subscribers! I greatly appreciate the shoutout by him but should add the following clarification:
Regarding the chart below which he reposted comparing the original ACA subsidy scale to the current version: You probably think that if the enhanced subsidies expire it will revert back to the original version, which would be bad enough. In fact, however, the Trump Regime has also made THAT version even worse, like so:
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Covered California Executive Director Jessica Altman issued the following statement on Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi’s announcement of her retirement on Thursday:
“After nearly four decades of unmatched public service, Speaker Emerita Pelosi leaves behind a legacy that continues to affect the lives of millions of Americans every day.
“Speaker Emerita Pelosi was one of the architects of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the driving force in making sure the landmark legislation became the law of the land in 2010.
“She was again the speaker of the House when the current Enhanced Premium Tax Credits were passed in 2021, further bringing down costs for consumers and making health insurance more affordable and accessible to more Americans than ever.
“Thanks to the speaker emerita’s tireless efforts, enrollment in Affordable Care Act marketplaces has more than doubled nationwide and currently provides health care coverage to over 24 million Americans, including nearly 2 million here in California.
Nevadans can now enroll in health insurance for 2026: 140 Qualified Health Plans from eight insurance carriers and new Battle Born State Plans for Nevadans to choose from
CARSON CITY, Nev. (November 3, 2025) – On November 1, Nevada Health Link kicked off the Open Enrollment Period for Plan Year 2026 with 140 Qualified Health Plans through eight brand-name private insurance carriers, including the new state-approved Battle Born State Plans (BBSPs). Nevadans can view, compare and shop plans now through January 15, 2026 on NevadaHealthLink.com.
New this year, Nevada Health Link will offer Battle Born State Plans or BBSPs.
Like all plans on the Marketplace, BBSPs will cover all ten essential health benefits, including hospitalization, doctor visits, emergency care, lab work and prescription drugs. These plans are required to be offered statewide, while also meeting specific reduction targets to bring costs down. This is especially significant for Nevadans living in rural areas, who will have more options this year when selecting a plan.
New “Yes, NY” Campaign Encouraging New Yorkers to Enroll in Quality, Affordable Health Coverage
Open Enrollment for 2026 Qualified Health Plans Began November 1 and Ends January 31, 2026
Enhanced Dental Benefits Introduced for 2026
ALBANY, NY (November 6, 2025) – The New York State Department of Health today announced the start of Open Enrollment for 2026 health insurance coverage through NY State of Health, the Official Health Plan Marketplace, launching a new statewide “Yes, NY” campaign to encourage New Yorkers to enroll in affordable, high-quality health coverage. Open enrollment runs from November 1, 2025, to January 31, 2026.
Amid federal health care changes negatively impacting Americans, Get Covered Illinois is here to help.
CHICAGO – Get Covered Illinois kicked off 2026 open enrollment and launched its “Here to Help” campaign across the state.
Open enrollment, which began on November 1 and runs through January 15, is the annual opportunity for Illinoisans to enroll in, renew, or change their health insurance plans. Nearly 466,000 Illinoisans purchased health coverage through Get Covered Illinois during open enrollment last year, a 17% increase from the previous year.
This year, Illinoisans will experience a new marketplace. Enrollees will apply for and enroll directly on GetCoveredIllinois.gov now that Illinois has officially transitioned to a state-based marketplace. They will also have access to increased support that is more tailored to their needs.
I've written multiple times in the past about "Silver Loading," the ACA health insurance policy pricing strategy in which insurance carriers load the extra cost of their Cost Sharing Reduction financial burden (the portion of deductibles, co-pays & coinsurance which they're required to cover themselves for low-income enrollees who select Silver plans) onto the gross premium of those same Silver plans.
It gets a bit wonky, but the bottom line is that Silver Loading results in the gross price of Silver ACA plans increasing significantly even if the price of Bronze, Gold & Platinum plans only go up modestly. This may sound bad, but stay with me.
From the carriers perspective, how the CSR load is allocated doesn't matter much as long as they aren't left stuck with the bill...but pricing the plans in this fashion has major implications for the enrollees themselves.
For nearly a year now, I've been writing about the upcoming expiration of the enhanced ACA premium tax credits (eAPTC) which have been in place for the past five years. They're currently scheduled to expire at the end of December, less than 2 months from today.
Over the past few weeks as the various ACA exchange websites brought their 2026 ACA window shopping live, I've started plugging in different household scenarios to see what actual, real world price hikes look like.
Throughout all of these examples, however, two things have remained consistent:
Wyoming has ~46,000 residents enrolled in ACA exchange plans, 95% of whom are currently subsidized. They also have an unknown number of off-exchange enrollees (likely only a few thousand at most). Combined, that's around 8% of their total population.
(Note, however, that the official actuarial rate filings for the 3 carriers offering coverage in the Wyoming individual market only report a combined total of around 39,000 enrollees as of spring 2025, or 6.6% of the total population).
