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A hard income cutoff written into the Affordable Care Act resurfaced this year. Families just above the line now owe thousands more for coverage
Nathan Posner / Anadolu via Getty Images
The Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, has survived everything its opponents have thrown at it. Courts tried to strike it down. Congress voted more than 60 times to repeal it. The Trump administration cut off billions in insurer payments. Each time, the law's defenders found a way to protect it.
The crisis hitting the ACA marketplace in 2026 is different. No court ordered it. No president vetoed funding. No Senate vote dismantled a provision. Premiums are climbing past $2,000 a month for middle-income families because of a flaw in the law's own design, exposed when Congress let a temporary fix expire.
