The Senate voted Thursday to reject health care bills offered by each party, as the U.S. heads for a cliff with steep Obamacare premium hikes for millions of Americans set to hit next month.
The failed votes raise the likelihood that enhanced Obamacare subsidies passed in 2021 will expire at the end of this year and cause premiums to double on average for some 22 million Americans who benefit from that funding, roughly half of whom are in the country illegally.
Many of the 22 are illegal immigrants, and Republicans will not approve that. However, Republicans could pass a bill if they ditched the filibuster.
Democrats won’t pass any Republican bill.
Neither bill – there are two healthcare bills – achieved the 60 votes needed to advance, kicking the issue into the political arena. Democrats will use the issue to mobilize voters in the 2026 midterm elections if there is no outcome to prevent the cost increases.
The Democrats have already started, and Republicans are notoriously unable to get their message out.
“The Republican plan is a ‘when you get sick, you go broke’ plan,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Thursday on the Senate floor.
Democrats may talk about helping Americans, but their bill is nothing more than a political messaging exercise.
Republicans have a plan to start addressing the spiraling health care costs in Obamacare and make structural reforms that would drive down premium prices. pic.twitter.com/UnvMjEdTU2
— Leader John Thune (@LeaderJohnThune) December 11, 2025
To be clear – there is NOTHING in the Democratic proposal to address high health care costs – no reforms and no cost controls.
Their entire position is to dramatically jack up taxpayer payments directly to health insurance companies.
If they win, insurer stock prices will soar pic.twitter.com/ciS0GOrdIQ
— Brian Blase (@brian_blase) October 3, 2025
Here’s a plan Republicans. How about getting the illegals the F out of the country so we don’t have to provide insurance for them? I can just hear democrats now. Republicans don’t care about the lower class peoples insurance. Certainly a losing issue next November. Republicans control the House, Senate, White House and Supreme Court and still fail to improve… Read more »
…and yet no interstate competition will be proposed by either party. THAT would open the door for real competition and lower costs.
Health Insurance is the ONLY insurance industry to not allow interstate competition – by design.