REPORT: Arizonans Face Sharply Rising Health Insurance Costs After ACA Premium Tax Credits Expire

TUCSON — Honest Arizona released a new analysis highlighting the growing financial burden on Arizona families and individuals following the expiration of Affordable Care Act (ACA) health care tax credits at the end of 2025. 

According to the report, ACA tax credits reduced monthly health insurance premiums for hundreds of thousands of Arizonans before the Republican-led Congress allowed them to expire, leading to steep increases in out-of-pocket costs and creating tough choices for people trying to maintain coverage. In Arizona, nearly 380,000 people received enhanced premium tax credits in 2025. 

Congressman Juan Ciscomani said he was in favor of extending the tax credits, but when those credits came up for a vote, he sided with Republican extremists to keep the cost-saving tax credits from coming back.

According to Honest Arizona's report:

“For people enrolled in Marketplace plans, the expiration of premium tax credits brings with it a major rise in annual health care costs and difficult decisions about whether to stay insured at all. On average, out-of-pocket premiums for Marketplace plans were projected to rise 114% with the expiration of enhanced tax credits, but each individual case looks different. For example, a 60-year-old couple in Arizona with an income of $85,600 would see their premium rise by $20,177 – a 306% increase, equivalent to several months of rent. A family of four earning $66,000 would have an increase of $3,025, or 325%.

For many individuals and families, those increased costs are the deciding factor on whether or not to maintain coverage. For nearly 60% of Marketplace enrollees, an annual increase of even $300 in health care expenses would mean severely disrupting household finances.”

“Dealing with higher prices is a struggle, but health care is something that I can't live without,” said Robert Hess III. “Arizonans like me need our health care to be more affordable, but Congress voted to make health care more expensive for millions like me.”

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