U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) said he’s worried that Congress will fail to extend the Affordable Care Act subsidies before the end of the year.
The Senate is scheduled to consider an extension of the ACA subsidies sponsored by Democrats next week.
But Murphy, who is a Democrat, is not optimistic there’ll be enough Republican support to pass the measure.
“I’ll just be honest, I am worried right now that it's going to fail, we don’t have signs from Republicans that they are going to join us,” he said on Wednesday.
But he’s optimistic that public outcry after higher ACA premiums take effect in January might make a difference.
“My hope is that if the Republicans don’t do the right thing in December, faced with the reality of millions of people losing their health care in January and February, they will choose to do the right thing then,” he said.
There are an estimated 22 million people who currently receive a tax credit to lower their ACA monthly premiums.
Open enrollment for ACA plans for the upcoming year ends on December 15.
