Trump blasts Murkowski’s healthcare vote amid subsidy push
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US Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, both Republicans from Alaska, are striving to restore healthcare subsidies before the January 15 enrollment deadline. The subsidies, which expired at the start of the year, increased financial assistance and expanded eligibility for lower health insurance premiums to those with incomes exceeding 400% of the federal poverty level. President Donald Trump criticized Murkowski without directly mentioning the subsidy extension, instead advocating for a plan to direct funding towards healthcare users instead of insurance companies.
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Senator Murkowski and Alaska Healthcare Subsidies: A Race Against Time
President Donald Trump voiced public criticism against Senator Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, during a meeting with House Republicans. This occurrence comes at a time when Senator Murkowski, together with Senator Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, are in a race against time to reinstate expired healthcare subsidies before the 15th of January deadline. The expired subsidies affect approximately 28,000 Alaskans, who are now facing steep premium increases.
The Deadline and the Plan
The impending date marks the end of the enrollment period for Alaskans to partake in the 2026 Affordable Care Act health plans. Despite this, Senator Murkowski is pushing for a deadline extension as part of her proposal. The discussion with House Republicans took place at the Trump Kennedy Center, where the President expressed a desire to solve the healthcare problem. However, the President did not directly talk about healthcare subsidies extension. Instead, he showed support for a plan advocated by Senator Bill Cassidy, R-Louisiana which aims to channel funds directly to healthcare users instead of insurance companies.
While the current issue takes center stage, the President also addressed his previous attempt at a healthcare plan during his first term, calling out Senator Murkowski for voting against the plan. He further commented that healthcare has never been ‘our issue’, expressing the need for it to become a priority issue.
Alaskan Representatives and the Subsidies Issue
Representative Nick Begich, R-Alaska, confirmed through his spokesperson, Silver Prout, that he was present at the Tuesday meeting. Begich has previously voiced his support for extending subsidies with reforms during a press conference that announced the injection of $272 million into healthcare from the rural health transformation fund, created under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Begich stated that there were potential ways to extend the enhanced premium tax credit subsidy, alongside durable reforms that would address the fundamental cost of care.
These tax credits or subsidies were introduced under 2021 legislation and extended in 2022, expanding eligibility for lower health insurance premiums to those whose incomes exceed 400% of the federal poverty level and increased the amount of financial assistance. The Alaska Division of Insurance website explains that while the full-price rates remain stable, the out-of-pocket premiums Alaskans pay for insurance may dramatically increase depending on their income due to the expiration of the enhanced subsidies under the Inflation Reduction Act.
Senator Murkowski’s Attempts and Challenges
Senator Murkowski expressed her intent to assist Alaskans in avoiding the financial burden that the expiration of extended premium tax credits under the Affordable Care Act would bring upon them on the Alaska’s Political Pipeline podcast in late December. Despite the imminent expiry, the senator remained hopeful. She said, “I’m hoping that we’ll be able to advance a bipartisan, bicameral initiative in the very first weeks when we get back in January.”
Senators Murkowski and Sullivan were among four Republicans who voted against their party in December in an attempt to pass an extension in the GOP-controlled Senate. The measure failed.
Even though the deadline is quickly approaching, plans are still being discussed, and despite being slow, they remain active. Subsidy extension has yet to gain support from the president, one of the many challenges Senator Murkowski faces as she continues to push for the restoration of these expired subsidies.
The Effect on Alaskans
Genevieve Mina, D-Anchorage, the House Health & Social Services Chair, announced on Tuesday that there’s little that state lawmakers can do to ease the burden for Alaskans using the Affordable Care Act given the state’s economic situation. With the expiry of these tax credits, Alaskans are forced to go without health insurance, or make difficult decisions between paying their mortgage or having health care coverage. The state legislature passed a joint resolution in May urging Congress to “extend enhanced tax credits for health insurance premiums under the Affordable Care Act.”
House Minority Leader Mia Costello, R-Anchorage, voted against the resolution but explained that her vote was against the system in general, not the tax credits. Costello acknowledged the hardship small businesses and individuals face due to high healthcare costs and expressed her support for a plan that makes healthcare affordable for all rather than subsidizing a high-cost system.
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