Health Insurance Affordability

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Access to affordable health insurance is a key factor for surviving cancer. Individuals who are uninsured or who cannot afford the out-of-pocket costs for their insurance are less likely to get screened for cancer and therefore less likely to survive a cancer diagnosis.  

Through the Affordable Care Act, those with lower incomes who purchase health insurance plans on the Marketplace receive tax credits to help make plans more affordable.  The tax credits were later expanded to provide more individuals with financial assistance to help them afford their health insurance plans. Unfortunately, these enhanced health care tax credits expired on January 1, 2026, because Congress failed to renew them. 

These enhanced tax credits led to record enrollment in Marketplace plans and provided millions with a path to affordable, comprehensive coverage to be able to prevent, detect and treat cancer.  Due to these tax credits expiring, 20 million people are facing higher health insurance costs and millions have become uninsured due to a lack of affordable options. Congress needs to reinstate enhanced health care tax credits and work to make health care more affordable.

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Shagah video still soft smile

Congress must reinstate enhanced health care tax credits

Shagah, recently diagnosed with cancer for the fourth time, needs Congress to reinstate enhanced health care tax credits to help her afford her care and stay alive. Urge your members to help make health care more affordable for cancer patients like Shagah today.

Latest Updates

January 20, 2026
Pennsylvania

At the start of Pennsylvania’s 2026 legislative session, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN) is calling on lawmakers to seize opportunities to ease the burden of cancer. Advocates are urging state leaders to prioritize affordability and ensure that cost is not a barrier to Pennsylvanians’ ability to prevent, detect, treat and survive cancer.

January 15, 2026
Washington

OLYMPIA, Wash. – As Washington residents face soaring health insurance costs and hundreds of thousands at risk of losing life-saving coverage, volunteer advocates of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network will ask lawmakers on Wednesday to use the 2026 legislative session to preserve access to Medicaid and Medicaid expansion.

January 8, 2026
National

Following today’s bipartisan House vote on extending the enhanced tax credits, ACS CAN is once again calling on members of the Senate and the House to prioritize the health and wellbeing of their constituents and come together in a bipartisan, bicameral way to extend the enhanced premium tax credits immediately.

December 19, 2025
National

With Congress done for the year without extending the enhanced premium tax credits, ACS CAN urges members of the Senate and the House to prioritize the health and wellbeing of their constituents and come together in a bipartisan way to extend these tax credits when they return.

Health Insurance Affordability Resources

Our latest Survivor Views survey finds nearly three in four cancer patients and survivors who rely on the marketplace for comprehensive coverage stand to lose access to lifesaving care if the enhanced premium tax credits are not extended. Additionally, one quarter of those who rely on the enhanced health care tax credits report that if the credits expire, they will become uninsured or forced into a non-comprehensive "junk" plan.

There have been a number of changes to Marketplace Open Enrollment for plan year 2026. This factsheet is designed to help consumers as they navigate their options. 

This factsheet explains what health care tax credits (also known as "enhanced tax credits") are and why Congress needs to extend them before they expire at the end of the year.