Trump and the GOP let ACA prices skyrocket. 5 million have dropped health insurance

The federal government released data on how many people dropped coverage in the 29 states that use the Healthcare.gov marketplace for ACA insurance. Patrick Sison/AP hide caption toggle caption Patrick Sison/AP Far more people than previously known have dropped Affordable Care Act health insurance for 2026, according to data released Friday. Five million people who had signed up for health coverage from the ACA marketplaces in January either disenrolled or failed to pay their premiums and therefore dropped coverage. Prices in the market skyrocketed after President Trump and Republicans in Congress failed to extend extra financial help for enrollees last year. The Department of Health and Human Services published a report about the data on its website Friday. The 5 million reflects what insurers, administrators, and other health policy experts expected earlier this year. After initial sign ups showed that 1 million fewer people picked a plan this year compared to the year before, they predicted that the picture would get worse as time went on and people found they could not afford to pay their premiums. "The main takeaway is that enrollment is down 13% from last year," explains Cynthia Cox , director of KFF's Program on the ACA. …