December 23, 2025

Given the horrendous uncertainty about ACA Marketplace plans, we at CCHCC wanted to provide you with some important updates. These updates are for individuals and families who get their health insurance through the Marketplace.

1. Illinois residents should now be shopping for health insurance Marketplace plans at Get Covered Illinois!
The state of IL is now running its own Marketplace, and is no longer using the federal Marketplace known as Healthcare.gov. Illinois residents who are shopping for Marketplace plans will now shop at https://getcovered.illinois.gov/

2. Congress has failed to extend the Enhanced Premium Tax Credits that helped make Marketplace plans more affordable for millions of Americans.
Unfortunately, both the House and the Senate failed to pass legislation that would extend the Enhanced Premium Tax Credits for ACA Marketplace plans. And Speaker of the House Mike Johnson sent the House members home early, so no vote is expected any time soon.

These Enhanced Premium Tax Credits first went into effect in 2021, and they helped increase enrollment in Marketplace plans from 11 million Americans to over 24 million Americans. That’s how helpful this form of financial assistance has been!

CCHCC will continue to join with local, state, and national organizations from across the country to continue to advocate for the passage of legislation to extend these tax credits. We will keep you update on any developments in the new year.

3. Premium tax credits ARE still available for Marketplace plans, depending on enrollees’ incomes.
Some people will STILL benefit from the standard Premium Tax Credits, even though the Enhanced credits were not extended. It still worth shopping around to see what you might be eligible for.

4. It is STILL worth shopping for Marketplace plans to see what is available. Amazingly, some Gold plans in our area are extremely affordable.
Much to our amazement, we have seen that some Gold plans are extremely affordable, depending on people’s incomes. So, if you are shopping for a Marketplace plan, please be sure to look at ALL the metal tiers of coverage. Many Silver plans are exceedingly expensive (because the government subsidies for those specific plans have gone away), but even if a Silver plan is very expensive, it does not mean that a Gold plan will be.

READ ON!

November 4, 2025

Tomorrow – Wednesday, November 5 at 3 p.m. – U.S. Representative Nikki Budzinski is hosting a webinar focused on ACA Marketplace Open Enrollment in Illinois.

Congresswoman Budzinski will be present for the webinar and she will share her thoughts and insights regarding the termination of the enhanced premium tax credits, and about the ACA marketplace Open Enrollment.

The webinar will also feature Adani Sanchez and Claudia Lennhoff from CCHCC, to present information on how to navigate ACA Marketplace Open Enrollment in Illinois.

The webinar will be held over Zoom.

Please see below for details:

You are invited to a Zoom webinar on the ACA Marketplace Open Enrollment.
When: Nov 5, 2025 03:00 – 4:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada)
Topic: Rep. Budzinski ACA Open Enrollment Webinar
 
To join the webinar:
Please click the link below to join the webinar:
https://ushr.zoomgov.com/j/1612042135?pwd=J6cX0e5aNOdupg5dNQT0k0v1i58taz.1
Passcode: 103790

We hope to see you there!

Sincerely,
Champaign County Health Care Consumers

October 27, 2025

ACA Marketplace Open Enrollment is about to begin on November 1, and the partisan budget bill signed into law on July 4 of this year did not extend the enhanced premium tax credits that helped make Marketplace plans more affordable for millions of Americans. In fact, the partisan decision to not extend the enhanced premium tax credits will make it harder for Americans to afford their monthly health insurance premiums. Meanwhile, health insurance prices are expected to go up by an average of 30%.

These are indeed tough times. These are mean policy decisions that will only inflict pain on everyday Americans.

Collectively, we must do the best we can to meet the moment, and provide valuable information, and do everything we can to help people be able to maintain their health insurance coverage.

Please see below for more information:

ACA Marketplace Open Enrollment Community Meeting:
As we do every year, CCHCC will be holding a Community Meeting for ACA Marketplace Open Enrollment, where community members can come and learn about the Marketplace and what options are available.

Please note that even though the partisan budget bill signed into law on July 4 did not extend the Enhanced Premium Tax Subsidies – that’s the financial assistance to make health insurance premiums more affordable based on your income – the regular Premium Tax Subsidies are still available, and folks might be able to find coverage that works for them.

We encourage community members to attend this meeting if they are eligible for Marketplace coverage!

WHAT: Marketplace Open Enrollment Community Meeting

WHEN: Wednesday, October 29, 2025 at 7 p.m.

WHERE: Champaign Public Library; 200 W. Green St., Champaign

AMENITIES: Free parking; accessible; and refreshments.

READ ON!