AHEAD OF SENATE VOTE, MURPHY, BLUMENTHAL, CONNECTICUT FAMILIES DEMAND EXTENSION OF ACA TAX CREDITS

The following information was released by Connecticut Senator Christopher Murphy:

Today, U.S. Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) joined Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam, Ken Barela, President and CEO of the Hispanic Health Council, James Michel, CEO of Access Health CT, Connecticut's health insurance marketplace, and Connecticut residents in a press conference to spotlight the urgent need to extend Affordable Care Act premium subsidies before Connecticut families receiving subsidies will be forced to pay, on average, $6,212.40 more per year for their health care in 2026.

After Republicans refused to address the health care catastrophe they created during the government shutdown, Senators Murphy and Blumenthal gathered with constituents and health experts in Connecticut to highlight the stakes of this crisis and demand Republicans join with Democrats to extend the subsidies when the Senate takes up the issue in December.

Find excerpts of the press conference remarks below:

Senator Murphy emphasized his commitment to fight for Connecticut residents, and Americans across the country, who face skyrocketing health care premiums or outright loss of the their health coverage - in 2026, demanding Republicans come to the table to deliver a solution to the health care crisis they created: "There's about 20 million Americans right now who are on Affordable Care Act plans, and when these subsidies end on January 1, there is going to be a massive increase in premiums for people all across this country. In Connecticut, the average individual who's on an ACA plan will see a $6,000 increase in their premiums. There are many people here in Connecticut who will see a $25,000 increase in their premiums. Obviously, most middle and low-income people in Connecticut do not have $6,000 lying around under the mattress, and so when these premiums go up on January 1, the first consequence is that millions of people all across this country are just going to lose their health insurance. Probably the biggest decrease in health insurance rates in the last 20 years...There will be a vote in December on a bill to stop these premium increases, Republicans will have a chance to vote with us. We're going to fight every single day between now and then to try to get the number of Republicans we need in order to pass that legislation."

Senator Blumenthal called out Republicans for putting Connecticut families in a life-threatening and totally preventable health care crisis: "Let me put it as historically and bluntly as possible: people will die. People will die if these health care subsidies are not extended... Now, you know, normally, I'm a pretty bipartisan kind of guy. Normally, I try to be as kind and gentle as possible to people who may differ with me, but there is no excuse none for what Republicans are doing to the country. It is an intentional, purposeful, cruel and avoidable crisis... We've been promised a vote. We're going to hold Republicans to that promise. We are going to vote unanimously among Democrats for the extension of health care tax credits unanimously among Democrats. I challenge Republicans to come forward and say, you'll do it. Eliminate the anxiety and fear that people feel right now that they won't be able to afford health care insurance."

Alison, a resident of New Britain, CT spoke of her struggles to afford health care while juggling the rising costs of groceries and other basic necessities: "I have chronic illness which requires daily medication. I have chronic pain which requires daily management. I have an awareness that the older I get, the more susceptible I am to illness and injury and complications from illness and injury, and this is the point in my life where I should be budgeting for an increased level of insurance, not doing without it altogether. And that will be the outcome for me if the tax credits are not extended. Because this, of course, is not happening in isolation. I'm struggling to pay for increased prices of groceries and other necessary goods. On January 1, fees associated with my living costs are increasing to become even greater than my mortgage. I'm scared, I'm sad, I'm very angry, because nobody should have to make a choice between staying nourished, staying securely housed and having access to health care.... I hope that the people who are voting next month can really have it at the forefront of their mind that they are not voting for a policy or for a disposable budget line. I know they are voting for human beings."

Leslie, a resident of West Hartford, CT shared she fears she will not be able to afford to treat her MS if health care costs rise anymore: "If I want to stay employed the way I am, stay productive, keep working, keep helping smaller businesses grow, I need to stay healthy. I need that insurance. Without insurance, the one medication I take with my MS costs $7,000 a month. I switched to that medication because the one I had before was $10,000 a month, and I honestly couldn't stomach it. I couldn't stomach taking it, knowing that's what it cost. This insurance, this exchange, is a lifeline for so many.... So I thank our Senators. I admire them more and more all the time [because] I think what's happening in DC right now... it's worse than cruel. It's indifferent."

Hartford Mayor Arunan Arulampalam slammed Republicans in Congress for prioritizing millionaires and billionaires over Hartford families struggling to afford health care next year: "Republicans in Washington don't care about your health and your health care as much as they care about tax breaks for their billionaire friends who have bought and sold them, and they're selling you out in the process. We are appreciative to have two Senators who are standing with ordinary working families. This is a catastrophe for so many across the state, and certainly right here in the City of Hartford. It is so important that we tell these stories and we recognize that it impacts every single one of us... It is going to have ripples of impact all across the health system, and somehow, in the wealthiest country in the history of the world, we are still more focused on millionaires and billionaires than we are on health coverage for ordinary, hardworking families."

Ken Barela, President and CEO of the Hispanic Health Council, told the stories of Hartford residents facing the life or death stakes of maintaining their health care coverage if prices dramatically rise: "Imagine a single mother working two jobs to provide for her children, suddenly faced with the reality of losing her [health] insurance. We see this on a regular basis at the Hispanic Health Council. Without a safety net, the fear of not being able to afford a doctor's visit, let alone life-saving medication looms large. This is not just a financial issue. It is a matter of life and death... These subsidies are not merely financial support, they are the lifeline that allows our loved ones to live with dignity and purpose."