Susan Collins met with senators from both parties for nearly two hours last week to craft a compromise to extend the Affordable Care Act tax subsidies, the Republican senator from Maine said on Monday.
Seventeen senators attended the meeting on Dec. 15 to talk about “ways to come up with a compromise that would allow for the ACA enhanced tax subsidies to continue and not expire on Dec. 31,” Collins said at Bangor International Airport for the unveiling of its renovated runway.
The senators’ meeting shows that elected officials from both parties are working on bringing forward a compromise on the ACA subsidies, which have divided Congress for months. The issue was the driving force behind the 43-day government shutdown this fall, the longest in the nation’s history.
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The ACA tax subsidies were introduced during the pandemic and have allowed millions of Americans to pay less for health care premiums. Without the subsidies, health care costs in 2026 are set to surge by less than $50 for some and thousands for others, depending on the person’s income.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, said last week he would not hold a vote on a proposed extension until after Congress’ holiday break.
Collins did not say if she thought a compromise would be reached before the Dec. 31 deadline.
“I think it’s unfortunate that that Dec. 31 vote, or date, was chosen by the Democrats when they put the enhanced subsidies in place during COVID. But, we are where we are,” she said.
Collins proposed multiple changes at the meeting that would be enacted over two years, she said. Starting next year, the proposals would enforce a minimum payment and change who is eligible for the program, Collins said.
Those proposed changes include a $5 minimum monthly payment toward premiums, which would combat fraud that Collins said was happening throughout the system.
“[The minimum] would help get rid of the fraud that has been documented in the system, where we’ve had some unscrupulous insurance agents and companies enroll people who don’t even know that they’re being enrolled,” Collins said.
The $5 charge would notify people that they’re enrolled, making fraud less likely, she said.
Collins also proposed an income cap of approximately $200,000 per person. The cap per household would be a bit less than that, she said.
The caps are meant to improve the system by changing who qualifies for the subsidies, Collins said.
“I don’t think it’s fair for someone who’s earning minimum wage in Maine to be subsidizing somebody who is making hundreds of thousands of dollars,” Collins said.
The meeting also brought forward discussion on proposed reforms that would be implemented in the second year.
Collins didn’t specify what those reforms would be, but broadly spoke about what they would affect. One change would lower the cost of premiums by 11% and another would help people finance health savings accounts, which could be used to pay copays and other out-of-pocket expenses, she said.
The reforms are important but would be difficult to implement before the Dec. 31 deadline.
“I think it’s too complicated to try to get [the reforms] implemented [this year], but I do strongly support an extension of the ACA enhanced premium tax credits, but with reforms,” Collins said.