LANSING, Mich. (WZMQ) – Health care advocates and a state lawmaker gathered in Lansing to warn that expiring federal subsidies for the Affordable Care Act are already raising costs for Michigan families, and could leave many more without coverage in the coming years.
The event was hosted by the Michigan Democratic Party, but speakers focused largely on the health care impact of the federal budget reconciliation law passed by Congress last year, often referred to as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which cut Medicaid spending and did not extend enhanced ACA premium tax credits set to expire at the end of this year.
State Rep. Julie Brixie, D-Okemos, said the expiration of those tax credits is already being felt statewide.
“About 230,000 Michiganders have already lost their Medicaid, CHIP or ACA coverage after the Republicans gutted health care,” Brixie said. “154,000 Michiganders have dropped their ACA healthcare coverage after their premiums skyrocketed, and premiums for Michiganders receiving ACA tax credits increased by an average of 30% this year.”
Eric Schneidewind, with Protect Our Care Michigan, described the impact on a Michigan woman he identified only as Chris, who he said is in her late 50s and has pre-existing medical conditions.
“About a month ago, cuts in the ACA subsidies due to the 2025 Republican budget bill raised her premium to $843 a month plus a $5,500 deductible, an annual increase of over $10,000,” Schneidewind said.
Schneidewind cited estimates that roughly 180,000 people statewide, and about 12,000 in Michigan’s 7th Congressional District, will drop ACA coverage because it becomes unaffordable, with additional Medicaid eligibility losses statewide next year.
Dr. Michael H. Zaroukian, a primary care physician who said he has practiced in mid-Michigan for more than 40 years, framed the changes in terms of their effect on patients and providers. He cited a Congressional Budget Office estimate on the law’s combined impact.
“The CBO Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the ACA-related provisions of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will increase the number of uninsured Americans by 3.1 million,” Dr. Zaroukian said, “and when combined with the changes to the Medicaid program, will result in 16 million additional uninsured Americans by 2034.”
That combined estimate is broadly in line with published CBO analysis. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities have both estimated that Medicaid cuts and the expiration of enhanced ACA premium tax credits together will leave roughly 15 to 16 million more Americans uninsured by 2034. The Michigan-specific figures cited at the event, including the 230,000 and 154,000 numbers, came from the speakers and have not been independently verified against a primary state or federal source.
Dr. Zaroukian said the changes are also being felt by rural hospitals and primary care practices already facing workforce shortages, which he said are experiencing elevated financial strain and a risk of closure as fewer patients carry coverage.
WZMQ 19 has reached out to Congressman John James’ office for comment on the health care figures cited at the event.
