Extending COVID ACA Subsidies

Typically, the premium tax credit is available to taxpayers with household income between 100 percent and 400 percent of the federal poverty line. The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) generally eliminated the upper income limit and increased the amount of the premium tax credit (the percentage of household income that individuals are required to contribute to their health insurance coverage decreased to 9.61% in 2022). As part of the Inflation Reduction Act, Congress extended the expanded COVID-era premium tax credit subsidies through 2025. Now, many are calling for Congress to consider extending the expanded subsidies beyond 2025 or even make them permanent.

We asked two professors and authors of ALM’s Tax Facts with opposing political viewpoints to share their opinions about whether Congress should act to extend or make permanent the expanded COVID-era health insurance subsidies.

Below is a summary of the debate that ensued between the two professors.