The ACA enhanced premium tax credits expired on January 1, 2026. The consequences for millions of Americans' healthcare access are now fully documented — and the numbers are more severe than most enrollees understood when they made their plan choices.
According to a KFF analysis published May 19, 2026, the average Affordable Care Act Marketplace deductible grew by 37% — or more than $1,000 per person — from $2,759 in 2025 to $3,786 in 2026. This is the steepest single-year deductible increase in the ACA Marketplace's history. It occurred not because plans themselves became dramatically less generous, but because millions of enrollees were priced out of more comprehensive coverage and shifted to cheaper, higher-deductible bronze plans.
